U.S. regulators have proposed that all new cars come equipped with rear-view cameras starting in 2014. They believe this would decrease the back-over car accidents which kill 292 Americans each year and injure 18,000 more.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement that there is “no more tragic accident than for a parent or caregiver to back out of a garage or driveway and kill or injure an undetected child playing behind the vehicle. The changes we are proposing today will help drivers see into those blind zones directly behind vehicles to make sure it is safe to back up.”

Such changes would cost car makers another $1.9 to $2.7 billion yearly -- costs which would be passed on to consumers. But they’d be spread out among an estimated 16.6 million cars produced in the first year.

The cost per car would depend on whether or not the car already had a visual display screen, as used for navigation. If it did, then the added cost for a rear-view camera system would be $58 to $88. If it did not, the added cost would be $159 to $203.

Of the 18,000 people injured in back-over car accidents annually, 3,000 suffer incapacitating or catastrophic car accident injuries. And of all such cases of back-over accidents, 44 per cent involve children under 5 years old, who are less visible to drivers and who may be playing behind a car.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published the proposed rule and now seeks reactions to it. It has not yet indicated which type of technology should be used.

The Association of International Automobile Manufacturers and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers are assessing the proposal. But so far they and the automotive industry -- which is emphasizing high-tech gadgetry already -- seem to be taking a favorable position.