Automobile Fires in the U.S.: 2006-2010 Estimates

Automobile fires account for the majority of vehicle fires and vehicle fire deaths. It is necessary to address automobile fires if major reductions are to be seen in the overall vehicle fire problem. Any efforts to evaluate the merits of proposed fire safety improvements require an understanding of how many fires and deaths are presently occurring and how many might be prevented with the proposed improvements. In this paper, data from the U.S. Fire Administration’s National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) and the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA’s) fire department survey were used to estimate the frequency and associated losses of automobile fires attended by local U.S. fire departments, and the major factors in these fires and losses. The risk of automobile fires, associated deaths overall and from fires resulting from collision or overturn per billion kilometers driven are also included. The majority of automobile fires resulted from mechanical or electrical problems, but three out of every five automobile fire deaths resulted from fires started by collision or overturn.