Traveling by stretch limo may seem like the height of prudence for people going out to party, but it has hidden pitfalls. Of course, it makes great sense for a group of friends to set up a ride ahead of time so that no one who has been drinking — or planning to — gets behind the wheel. But many stretch limousines might be considered a kind of automotive zombie: They are former cars or sport utility vehicles that have been transformed after they leave the factory, and exist in a regulatory limbo. They usually do not have to meet arduous federal safety requirements, and they face a haphazard inspection system that varies from state to state. “Without sufficient safety standards in place, it is nothing but a fine line between a stretch limousine and a hearse,” Thomas Spota, the former Suffolk County district attorney, said in 2016.<doc-sep>What started out as a day of birthday celebration in upstate New York on Saturday, Oct. 6 ended tragically after a stretch limousine ran through a stop sign and crashed into an SUV. The crash killed 20 people, including all 17 passengers in the limo, the luxury car driver and two pedestrians nearby. Federal investigators report that this accident is the deadliest U.S. crash in almost a decade, according to the Washington Post. “Twenty fatalities is just horrific,” National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chairman Robert Sumwalt told reporters during an Oct. 7 news conference. “This is the most deadly transportation accident in this country since February of 2009.” The limo was carrying 17 guests of a birthday party, including four sisters, according to the Associated Press. Many people celebrating special events believe that hiring a limo is the safest option. It means you can avoid driving yourself at a time when you may be impaired by drinking or even just exhaustion. But accidents like this one raise serious questions about the potential dangers inherent in riding these luxury vehicles. What safety risks are there when someone climbs into the back of a stretch limo? Be Wary Of Converted Vehicles This isn’t the first serious accident involving stretch limousines. In July 2015, an accident involving a stretch limo in Suffolk County, New York, left four women dead. At the time, CBS News reported that there has been a deadly limo accident every year in this country since at least 2000, leading to at least 68 deaths. One of the biggest culprits? Vehicles that have been converted into stretch limousines, versus those that were originally manufactured as such. Peter Goelz, former managing director of the NTSB, told CNN that vehicles with “after-market modifications often affect a vehicle’s structural integrity and safety.” The New York Times outlined some of the most problematic modifications, which include cutting a car in half and installing plates to extend the floor and the roof. Pillars in the car, running from the ceiling to the floor, are a normal part of conventional cars, creating a structural cage around passengers. But in a stretch limousine, passenger areas are generally not protected by such pillars. In this case, the limo involved in the Oct. 6 crash appears to have been a converted SUV. Deborah Hersman of the National Safety Council called the inconsistent laws governing these modified limos, “Frankenstein laws for Frankenstein vehicles.” For example, 22 states do not require rear seat limo passengers to wear seat belts. Nor are their airbags in the backs of these vehicles. And with passengers in the rear of the car sitting with their backs to the car doors, there is a great risk for bodily harm if there is a side-impact crash. Ask For A Safety Record Not only that, but early details about the Oct. 6 accident reveal that the car involved in the crash “failed inspection last month and that the driver didn’t have appropriate license to operate the vehicle.” Valerie Abeling, the aunt of one of the crash victims, Erin McGowen, told The Washington Post that her daughter (who was not in the car) received a text from her niece about the limo before the party left. “The vehicle appeared in terrible condition,” Abeling said, recalling the text message her daughter received. What can you do if you’re looking to rent a limo but want to maximize your safety? Make sure to check a company’s references and safety records, which they’re required to maintain as part of their certification. In addition, when you rent a limo, make sure to inspect the vehicle thoroughly. If it doesn’t meet a visual inspection, you have the right to refuse the ride and request a new vehicle. Does this latest news make you think twice about renting a limo?<doc-sep>TORONTO – A deadly crash involving a stretched limousine-style SUV in New York state over the weekend has put a spotlight on safety concerns around the modified vehicles, but industry players maintain they’re safe. On Saturday the limousine, built from a 2001 Ford Excursion, ran a stop sign, crossed three lanes of traffic and hit a parked SUV before stopping in a wooded ditch. Two pedestrians and all 18 people in the limo celebrating a woman’s birthday died. The cause of the crash is being investigated but New York officials have raised concerns about a failed inspection for the vehicle last month. Potential riders should realize these stretched vehicles aren’t made by the major automotive companies, said Russ Rader, senior vice-president of communications at the Virginia-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “These vehicles are engineered to carry a lot of people, but in cutting them up and stretching them, some of the crash worthiness and safety aspects of the vehicle are taken out.” Side-impact protection, full side airbags, some rollover protection could be lost, while seating modifications could make seatbelts hard to access, said Rader. “Once a vehicle is modified and stretched like this, it would not meet the same crash-worthiness standards as the stock vehicle.” Manufacturers of the vehicles, however, say they stick with detailed specifications set out by the main automotive brands used in modifications including Ford Motor Co. and Cadillac. “We just do it one way, the way Ford or GM tells us how to build the car,” said Leo Bodenstein, vice-president of the professional vehicles division at Inkas Armored & Professional Vehicle Manufacturing. “When you convert a vehicle, you’re converting it to the equivalent of those specs. You can’t exceed them, you can’t go over those specs, you can’t go under those specs. You have to build it as set by the manufacturer.” Auto rebuilders can apply to be certified as meeting quality standards and specifications that outline requirements such as brake strength, wheelbase length limits, use of fireproof materials, and emergency exits including pop-out windows and an escape hatch in the ceiling. North York-based Inkas is a member of Ford Motor Co.’s Qualified Vehicle Modifier program and therefore sticks with the regulations, even though customers often ask for flexibility on things like an extra seat. Bodenstein said there are still some auto shops that might do modifications outside of what’s recommended by manufacturers, but Inkas sees significant value in being recognized as a member of Ford’s program. He said it looked like the Ford Excursion involved in the deadly crash in New York could be longer than 356 centimetres (140 inches), which exceeds the manufacturer’s specifications. Ford said in a statement that it does not have any information about the vehicle involved in this accident, but is ready to co-operate with agencies that are investigating. Hameed Khan at Rolling Luxury in Ottawa, which rents stretched SUVs, said he’s never had a customer ask about safety issues but they can see that the vehicle has been given an inspection on behalf of the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. “When they see the vehicle they would also see the annual sticker, so if the vehicle has that, it means that it’s gone through a thorough inspection by the ministry, by someone licensed by the ministry.” He said the company imports vehicles from the U.S., and that all imported vehicles have to be in auto manufacturer programs like Ford’s Qualified Vehicle Modifier program. The City of Toronto also requires that all modified Cadillac and Ford products must be converted in accordance with the manufacturers’ certification programs, while other conversions need to be certified by Transport Canada’s National Safety Mark. British Columbia introduced more stringent regulations for the industry in the province in 2015 and now requires each vehicle to be approved by the Passenger Transportation Board for a special licence and has imposed a more extensive application process and operator review. Rader at the Insurance Institute said that overall, customers need to do some due diligence before getting into such vehicles including a look at how companies train and licenses drivers, that it’s transparent on how they’re inspected, as well as adhering to basic safety practices. “Above all it’s important for people to recognize that just because you’re in a limousine out celebrating and having a good time, the laws of physics are always at work, and you’re not getting some magic force field protection. You have to wear your safety belt.”<doc-sep>
SCHOHARIE - Stretch limousines almost always are after-market conversions that may or may not include such safety features as seat belts or the safety "cage" of metal beams common in factory-manufactured vehicles. And the banquette-style seating common in many stretch limousines may not have seat belts at all. New York state law requires only that front-seat passengers be belted in, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. "Anecdotally, it looks like the sideways-facing banquette style seats don't always have seat belts," said Russ Rader, senior vice president, communications for the institute. Investigators haven't said whether the 2001 Ford Excursion limousine involved in Saturday's crash in Schoharie was equipped with seat belts. But Gov. Andrew Cuomo did say Monday that the vehicle had failed its state inspection and shouldn't have been on the road. Twenty people, including all 17 passengers and the driver in the limousine and two pedestrians, were killed. One limousine driver who contacted the Times Union but asked that his name not be used said that brake systems often aren't modified when a vehicle is stretched. "The brake system is designed for a 7,000-lb. vehicle, not a 24,000-lb. vehicle," he said. Seating often takes the shape of a J, with inward-facing seats wrapping from the front partition behind the driver and then down one side to the back doors, he said. "That J seat typically does not have seat belts," he added. "If that vehicle comes to a sudden stop, people will fly forward." Typically, "there won't be any airbags to protect passengers in back," he said. And while the major automakers post limitations on how the vehicles are modified post-production, these are often ignored by the coach builders doing the stretching, he said. "The vehicle failed physical inspection," Gov. Andrew Cuomo told reporters Monday. "First of all, when you have a stretch vehicle, what they call a chopped vehicle, which is what this limousine was. This was a Ford that was cut and extended. "When that vehicle is constructed, it's supposed to have a federal certification as to the manufacturer of that vehicle," Cuomo said. "This vehicle did not have that certification that it was extended in a way that was compliant with federal law." National Transportation Safety Board investigators are expected to look at these and other factors as they seek to determine the cause of Saturday's crash and draw up recommendations to prevent future tragedies. Rader said that 12 people were killed in limousine crashes during a five-year period from 2012 to 2016. Of those, 11 weren't wearing a seat belt. The data probably under-count the fatalities, he said, because of the way that police code the crash reports. There's one code for automobile-based limousines such as the Lincoln Continental. But SUV-based limousines aren't similarly coded. New York has changed inspection procedures for so-called stretch vehicles, shifting those procedures to the state Department of Transportation from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Stretch vehicles that carry 10 or more people, including the driver, are now are classified as buses. But those changes weren't enough to keep this vehicle off the highway. "The vehicle was inspected last month, failed inspection, it's not supposed to be on the road," said Cuomo. "The driver did not have the appropriate license. Those are very clear laws and regulations. "Sometimes people just don't follow the law. And that," Cuomo said, "may very well be what happened here."