Among the most dangerous risk factors is excessive speed.
Following the death of 20 people in a devastating limousine crash in upstate New York over the weekend, many have been left wondering how safe stretch limos are.
“The biggest risk is the driver going too fast,” former limo company owner Eddie Fahmy told Inside Edition. “Add 18 people to the car and another 2,000 pounds of weight, trying to stop this car takes five times as long to stop the vehicle and unfortunately that's a recipe for disaster."
The limo that crashed in Upstate New York was reportedly going 60 miles per hour.
“There's no reason for you to be driving that fast in a vehicle this large," Fahmy added. "Anything over 40 miles per hour, I consider dangerous,"
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo told reporters Monday that the limo failed an inspection last month and shouldn't have been on the road.
In addition, the driver, identified as Scott Lisinicchia, reportedly did not have the appropriate license for a limo.
A stretch limo is not manufactured by any major auto company. They are actually put together by cutting a regular vehicle in half and adding a whole new middle section.
Some limos are equipped with seat belts for each passenger, but it's not clear if that was the case in the doomed vehicle. The front seat passengers and the driver would have been required by law to wear seat belts, but not the passengers in the back.
Saturday's crash is the latest deadly accident involving limos.
In 2013, five women attending a bachelorette party died when their stretch limo caught fire in San Francisco.
In 2015, four women on a Long Island winery tour were killed when their limo crashed while making a U-turn.
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