Advocates Urge Mandatory Reverse Braking on New Cars
A safety group recommends reverse automatic emergency braking on all new vehicles, citing new federal study findings on rearview cameras.
Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Car Types
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Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety recommends mandatory reverse emergency braking on all new cars. A new NHTSA study found rearview image systems were 65.2 percent effective in preventing pedestrian backover crashes.
Why it matters
The recommendation would move beyond rearview cameras, which display what is behind a vehicle but do not brake on their own. The group cited federal safety standards credited with saving over 860,000 lives from 1968 through 2019.
A new NHTSA study found rearview image systems were 65.2 percent effective in preventing pedestrian backover crashes, with higher odds of such crashes for light trucks and vans than passenger cars. The study does not measure automatic braking, so its figure does not estimate what a reverse-braking mandate would prevent.
The players
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety
A nonprofit coalition that advocates for federal vehicle safety standards and regulation of the automotive industry.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
The U.S. federal agency responsible for vehicle safety standards, crash research and motor vehicle regulation.
General Motors (GM)
A major American automaker whose model-year availability data shows reverse automatic emergency braking across much of its lineup.
The details
Reverse automatic emergency braking can intervene when the system detects an obstacle and the driver does not respond. Advocates recommends that Congress require rear automatic emergency braking that detects all vulnerable road users on new vehicles. GM's model-year availability data shows reverse automatic emergency braking across much of its lineup.
Timeline
May 1, 2018: The federal rearview-camera requirement took effect for new vehicles under 10,000 pounds manufactured on or after that date.
1968 through 2019: Federal motor vehicle safety standards are credited with saving over 860,000 lives.
November 13, 2026: Advocates' recommendation for mandatory reverse emergency braking was published.
Roadmap
The advocates' call builds on the federal rearview-camera requirement that took effect May 1, 2018, moving the regulatory focus from giving drivers a view behind the vehicle toward systems that can stop the car. The step mirrors a broader push to shift federal vehicle safety rules from passive equipment toward active crash avoidance.
Drivers shopping for new vehicles should check whether reverse automatic emergency braking is standard or optional on a given model, since a rearview camera alone does not brake. The federal rearview-camera requirement already applies to new vehicles under 10,000 pounds made since May 1, 2018.
The takeaway
Check the reverse-braking features of any new vehicle you consider, because a rearview camera shows what is behind you but will not stop the car. Advocates are pushing for that protection to become standard across new vehicles.
Further reading
Explore more on Car Types to see how different vehicle designs handle safety features like rearview cameras and automatic braking.
Source note: This article includes information reported by GM Authority.
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