Internationally pioneering study
eCall emergency call system prevents road deaths, false calls burden emergency services

The automatic emergency call system eCall is installed in roughly one in eight Finnish passenger cars and vans. According to a study commissioned by the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom, the eCall system prevented an estimated one road fatality between 2019 and 2023 in Finland. From the perspective of emergency response centres, the main problem is false eCall notifications, which account for around 80 per cent of all eCalls.

Since 2018, the automatic emergency call system, known as eCall, has gradually become more common in the Finnish vehicle fleet. The system detects when a vehicle is involved in an accident and automatically contacts an emergency response centre (also known as public safety answering point, PSAP). The same eCall system is used across Europe.

eCall to become mandatory in new passenger cars and vans from 2027

At present, the eCall system is installed in roughly one in eight passenger cars and vans in Finland. From 2027 onwards, all new passenger cars and vans will be required to be equipped with eCall. By 2035, it is estimated that around 27 per cent of passenger cars and vans in Finland will have an eCall system. The system is not yet available for other types of vehicles.

The purpose of the system is to speed up the reporting of accidents and the arrival of assistance at the scene. eCall has the greatest potential to save lives in serious accidents where, without an automatic eCall notification, an emergency call would be made only after a delay. Such accidents include, for example, single-vehicle run-off-road crashes on low-traffic roads.

Internationally pioneering eCall study

A study commissioned by Traficom from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland examined the impacts of eCall in Finland during the system’s initial years of use. It also assessed the system’s effects on road safety up to 2036.

The study analysed road accidents occurring from 2019 onwards that resulted in fatalities or serious injuries, as well as emergency calls made in different ways in all road accidents and the related rescue operations. In addition, dispatchers, who handle emergency calls, and rescue service personnel were interviewed.

“The study was methodologically challenging and internationally pioneering. No comparable study based on extensive datasets on the real-world impacts of the eCall system has been conducted anywhere else,” says Chief Specialist Anna Schirokoff at Traficom.

By combining different datasets, it was possible to estimate that between 2019 and 2023 the automatic emergency call likely prevented approximately one road fatality in Finland. However, the study did not identify any specific accident in which a death was prevented. “In the coming years, as the system becomes more widespread, eCall is expected to save one life annually. By 2036, around 10 road fatalities are expected to be avoided thanks to eCall,” says Principal Scientist Satu Innamaa at VTT.

eCall system should not be tested unnecessarily

Through eCall, the location of a vehicle involved in an accident, along with other essential data, is automatically transmitted to the emergency response centre. This information helps the dispatcher assess the severity and urgency of the situation. However, the eCall system also places a burden on emergency response centres: 80 per cent of incoming eCalls have been false. For manual eCall activations, the share of false calls has been as high as 94 per cent.

“The Emergency Response Centre Agency reminds users that the system should not be tested, as this places a burden on the 112 emergency number. eCall is intended for urgent emergency situations only,” emphasises Development Manager Tommi Hopearuoho at the Emergency Response Centre Agency.