INDIANAPOLIS — If you drive a car that was designated a Top Safety Pick last year, you might want to check and see if it’s still on the list.

More than half of vehicles that received a Top Safety Pick rating by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in 2022 are not on the same list for 2023.

The reason is a new set of standards outlined by IIHS.  Those standards call for several improvements to protect people inside and outside of vehicles.  Those include stricter standards for the safest headlights, more pedestrian crash prevention and better protection against side impacts.

“We need automakers to improve the safety of their vehicles to address today’s side crashes, which are occurring at much higher speeds and often involve striking vehicles that are much larger, such as pickups and SUVs.” said IIHS President David Harkey.

As a result of the higher standards, the list of Top Safety Pick awards is less than half as long as it was last year.  In 2022, 101 vehicle models made the list.  For 2023, only 48 have the Top Safety Pick title.

Aside from driver, passenger and pedestrian safety, IIHS safety ratings can affect car owners’ insurance rates.  So it’s worth your time to see how your vehicle scores.

Toyota had the most models on the list with 15. Honda, which includes ACURA, had 8 on the list.

Harkey said he believes auto makers will respond to the new standards, and the institute will start adding more models to the list as that happens.

To see how your vehicle scores on the IIHS safety ratings, you can check out the report on the institute’s website.