Kia Niro Hybrid Earns Top Safety Pick+
The 2018 Kia Niro gasoline-electric hybrid has qualified for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's highest safety rating, the Top Safety Pick+, when equipped with optional automatic emergency braking and high-intensity discharge headlights.

The 2018 Kia Niro has been awarded the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's highest rating.
Photo courtesy of IIHS.
The 2018 Kia Niro gasoline-electric hybrid has qualified for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's highest safety rating, the Top Safety Pick+, when equipped with optional automatic emergency braking and high-intensity discharge headlights.
The Niro earned good ratings across the board in IIHS crash tests, including the passenger-side small overlap front test. The good ratings also apply to the plug-in hybrid Niro. Hyundai introduced the subcompact SUV in the 2017 model year.
The frontal crash prevention is optional on the regular hybrid and standard on the plug-in model. The system helped the vehicle avoid collisions in 12 mph and 25 mph tests. The vehicle also includes a forward collision warning that meets National Highway Traffic Safety Administration criteria.
The base headlights on both versions earned a poor rating, while the HID headlights available on higher trim grades are rated as good. The institute didn't rate the LED headlights available on the plug-in model.
Related: 2017 Kia Niro Hybrid (driving notes)
More Safety

The Safest Fleets Aren’t the Ones with the Most Technology
You’ve made the telematics investment. Here’s how to capture the other half of its value and build the safest fleet on the road.
Read More →
Hidden in Plain Sight: Fleet Compliance Risks
Fleet compliance isn't just about having policies — it's about consistently enforcing them. This practical guide reveals six hidden compliance risks common in public sector and shared fleet operations and outlines proven strategies to improve visibility, accountability, and audit readiness
Read More →
NETS Sets 2026 Fleet Safety Benchmark Conference for Indianapolis
The Sept. 15–17 program will feature fleet benchmarking data, case studies, emerging technologies, and implementation strategies while running alongside the NSC Safety Congress & Expo.
Read More →
Off-the-Job Crashes Account for 43% of Employers’ $61.7 Billion Crash Burden
NETS quantifies costs dispersed across fleet, risk, HR, and other departments while providing new per-crash benchmarks for employers.
Read More →
Ram Recalls More Than 1.27 Million 1500 Pickups for Seat Belt Anchor Issue
The recall affects certain 2019-2026 Ram 1500 pickups that may have improperly attached second-row seat belt buckle anchors.
Read More →How Better Visibility Cut Speeding Violations by 48%
Fleet leaders don't need more data, they need clearer visibility into what the data is saying. This case study explores how one utility replaced speeding-event counts with a single metric — miles driven in violation — to strengthen safety and significantly reduce speeding violations.
Read More →
Operation Safe Driver Week: Why the Industry's Oldest Safety Campaign Still Matters to Fleets
A look at how a 2007 enforcement initiative became one of the most consequential weeks on the fleet safety calendar, and what it means for your drivers in 2026.
Read More →
Nexar-Nauto Merger Aims to Give Fleets Better Safety Intelligence Through Larger Driving Dataset
Stefan Heck tells Automotive Fleet that combining more than 10 billion miles of driving history with Nexar's AI models will give fleets deeper insights into driver risk and roadway conditions than either company could provide independently.
Read More →From Silos to Solutions: Relationship Management for Safer Fleets
From telematics adoption and driver accountability to policy consistency and risk mitigation, this episode breaks down what it really takes to build a safer fleet culture without slowing business down.
Read More →
IIHS Launches First Commercial Vehicle Safety Evaluations
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has begun evaluating heavy-duty pickups and cargo vans for driver protection. Which models earned top marks?
Read More →
