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Fires originating in large trucks can be significant in terms of both the potential for personal injury or death and the potential for substantial economic loss of the vehicle and its cargo. This analysis examines the large trucks involved in fire incidents and the causes of the fires by examining the National Automotive Sampling System (NASS/GES), the Large Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS), and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). In this report we compare the rate of post-collision fire observed in these databases, analyze the reasons for differences in and describe the circumstances of large truck fires as reported in the LTCCS.

Objective: To provide an understanding of the scope of the major sources of vehicle fire data, the questions they were intended to answer, and how issues of definition, inclusion, and quality can affect the conclusions obtained. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA's) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), by definition, focuses on fatal accidents. NHTSA also maintains the National Automotive Sampling System (NASS) General Estimates System (GES).These systems capture data on roadway accidents that resulted in injury, fatality or property damage and which were reported to police. The GES system is based upon data recorded in the police accident report. In addition, some databases of police accident reports are publicly available. The U.S. Fire Administration's (USFA's) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) is used by fire departments to document details about all types of fires.

Recently there has been increasing interest in stationary vehicle fires (SVF) and the safety of vehicles parked in garages. This interest has grown out of allegations by insurance companies that garage fires, some of which spread to other parts of the residence and cause considerable damage and/or injuries, may be caused by vehicles, and hence the vehicle manufacturer should be liable for damages. Data from the National Fire Incidence Reporting System (NFIRS) 1999-2002 were used to study the involvement of motor vehicles in garage fires and to compare the risk of injury and fatality in post collision fuel fed fires (PCFFF) to risk of fatality in garage fires. This paper explores the role of both vehicles and other causes in garage fires. It is found that only 4.4% of garage fires in the US, or approximately 1,200 annual fires, are of the type that could possibly be related to vehicle design or maintenance.