The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has some mixed safety news for those who choose hybrid cars such as the Honda Civic Hybrid. The chances of being injured in a collision while in a green car are 25 percent lower than in a comparable conventional powered car. The bad news? Hybrid car drivers are 20 percent more likely to be involved in accidents with pedestrians.

The safety news is based on two separate studies conducted by the IIHS, an organization known for its vehicle crash tests safety information.

In determining the lower chance of occupant injuries, the IIHS compared accident data from 2002 to 2010 for 25 hybrid cars and their conventional twins—a Ford Fusion Hybrid against an ordinary Fusion, for example. Matt Moore, vice president for IIHS' Highway Loss Data Institute (HDLI) and author of the safety study, said:

Hybrids on average are 10 percent heavier than their standard counterparts. This extra mass gives them an advantage in crashes that their conventional twins don't have. Saving at the pump no longer means you have to skimp on crash protection.

The good safety news for hybrid car drivers and riders, however, doesn't necessarily translate to pedestrian safety.

In a separate study, the HDLI also analyzed the frequently of injury claims when there was no related collision or property damage for 17 hybrids and their non-hybrid counterparts during 2004-2010. From that data, HDLI analysts determined that hybrid driver have an increased likelihood of a literal run-in with walkers.

"When hybrids operate in electric-only mode pedestrians can't hear them approaching," says Moore, "so they might step out into the roadway without checking first to see what's coming."

Hybrid models have lower injury odds than their conventional counterparts [IIHS]