IIHS: heavy trucks, cargo vans trail on crash prevention

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has published its first ratings for front crash prevention in commercial vehicles, and the top scores are scarce. Jalopnik reports that cargo vans and heavy-duty pickups trail passenger vehicles on this kind of safety system.

The group tested the vehicles two ways: front crash prevention against another vehicle, and front crash prevention against a pedestrian. Marginal and poor ratings were common among the first commercial vehicles it put through either test, the IIHS said. The group also noted that each test still had at least one good performer, evidence that meeting the challenge is within reach for manufacturers.

IIHS President David Harkey said in a statement: "These results are a wake-up call for commercial vehicle makers. Front crash prevention is especially important for these larger, heavier vans and trucks because of the danger they pose to other road users."

The vans came out ahead. Jalopnik reports the best vans were well clear of the trucks in these results.

The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500 took the best score in the vehicle-to-vehicle test. The electric Chevrolet BrightDrop 400 earned an acceptable rating. Jalopnik reports the Rivian and the Ram were rated marginal, and that no other vehicle in that test scored above poor.

The pedestrian test produced fewer bottom scores. The Chevrolet Express 2500 and the GMC Savana 2500 both got poor ratings. The Ford Transit T250, the Ram ProMaster 2500, the Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD and the GMC Sierra 3500 were rated marginal. The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, the Ford F-350 and the Ram 3500 each earned acceptable.

This is the second evaluation in the IIHS's new commercial vehicle testing. In June, the IIHS released its first set of results, which compared safety features rather than crash avoidance. Only two cargo vans had effective driver seatbelt reminders: the electric 2025 Chevrolet BrightDrop 400 and the 2025 Ram ProMaster 2500. Among the trucks, the 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD and the 2025 Ford F-350 passed the seatbelt reminder check. The 2026 Ram 3500 did not.

The stakes are not small. The IIHS said 6,215 people died in 2024 in crashes that involved light vans or heavy- and medium-duty vehicles, which came to 16% of all U.S. roadway deaths.

Jalopnik calls the IIHS taking on commercial vehicle safety a big deal, and expects work trucks and commercial vans to get safer over the next several years. For anyone who drives one of these for a living, or just shares the road with them, these ratings are the first thing to check before the next purchase.

• cargo vans
• crash tests
• David Harkey
• heavy-duty trucks
• IIHS