Jonathan Bennett of The Hartford is the new chair of The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the trade group known for staging spectacular crashes of late model sedans and SUVs into brick walls.
It’s a role Bennett — executive vice president of personal and small business insurance at The Hartford — says he enthusiastically embraces because of the institute’s impact on consumers and the insurance industry.
While admitting the evidence has not been quantified, Bennett said, “(M)ost of us today enjoy the company of somebody” whose life has been saved because of IIHS standards. “The institute’s work to help reduce crash injuries, deaths, and property damage on our nation’s roads is as important as ever. We’re proud of the number of lives we have saved.”
Bennett said the question of how consumers interact with technology inside automobiles will be a major part of the institute’s safety work in the next five to 10 years.
The Arlington, Virginia institute describes itself as “an independent, nonprofit, scientific, and educational organization dedicated to reducing the losses — deaths, injuries, and property damage — from crashes on the nation’s highways.” It is made up of more than 24 insurance companies and trade groups.
Jim MacPherson, a spokesperson for AAA and a leading automotive expert in Greater Hartford, said the IIHS has been innovative in finding ways to compliment National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) testing.
He said the group is active at looking at issues from an insurance industry perspective and it is more than willing to push its agenda, both publicly and behind the scenes. “We’ve seen in the face of wider regulations… vehicles that have been designed differently [because of the IIHS],” MacPherson said, adding that is something that can make auto purists cringe. “It’s undeniable in terms of fuel efficiency and crash testing we see cars that perform better than they would have without regulations. Today manufacturers know the tests and they’re designing cars to do well in the tests.”
The Hartford’s well documented financial woes didn’t deter Bennett from taking on his new role. Taking on the chairman’s role doesn’t detract from his work at The Hartford, Bennett said. Instead, he said, it expands the company’s business context and brings new ideas into the organization. “As a board member, I gain a lot of insight about the issues affecting our industry,” said Bennett, who has been involved with the institute since 2003.
Bennett’s ascension to the chairmanship has many benefits, according to Alan Polak of ALP Executive Consulting Resources in West Hartford. Polak said Bennett’s role can be doubly influential: He can have a national impact on consumers and insurance companies. He also is in position to advance the agenda of his company as well as put the company in a favorable altruistic light because involvement with the institute demonstrates an interest not just in the industry good but the general good of the public.
“The company can say we’re not just here to make money off of our customers,” Polak said. “It shows integrity on the company’s part.”
There’s no complicated formula to achieving a role of national prominence, Bennett said. The best way to get involved in industry organizations like this is to express interest and volunteer. “If you want to do it, raise your hand,” counseled Bennett. “I volunteered and put myself in a position to contribute and I did so willingly and enthusiastically.”
When it comes to vehicles in his driveway, Bennett says he only drives the institute’s top safety picks. He describes himself as a car guy. Among the highlights for him was witnessing a frontal offset collision between a 1959 and 2009 Chevrolet. “It was just remarkable to see the engineering that has taken place,” said Bennett of the crash that was staged as part of the IIHS’s 50th anniversary.
Jonathan Bennett, executive vice president of personal and small business insurance, The Hartford, and new chair, The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
The Institute has become identified with staging crash tests in its Virginia laboratory.
