I've noticed a lot of people arguing about the extremes. Not to disagree but just to add another point of view. There are 3 types of accidents in my opinion.

1. minor accidents where no matter what car you drive, you'll walk away
2. fatal accidents where no matter what car you drive, you'll die
3. everything in between

Most accidents will likely be #3. A safe car will ensure that the chances of you surviving is higher in this category.

More thoughts about safety:

- a safe car is a combination of features including seat belts. Wear your seatbelts. Princess Diana was traveling in one of the safest cars in the era. The only person to survive the crash was the bodyguard who was wearing a seat belt

- a safe car can be hampered when rescuers can't break the windscreen to save you in an accident because you put safety tint on it

- a safe car can become unsafe when loose items in the car fly around during impact. This is particularly true in SUV where there's no separation between the luggage and passenger sections