Assessing the benefit of the brake assist system for pedestrian injury mitigation through real-world accident investigations

► This is the result of a collaboration between four Spanish Safety Research Centres. ► A database with 139 pedestrian accidents, reconstructed using a common methodology. ► The effectiveness of brake assist system (BAS) for pedestrians has been assessed. ► The fitting of BAS is now compulsory for new vehicles in the European Union. ► The effectiveness of BAS can be improved by other secondary safety devices.