The integral safety concept from Mercedes-Benz divides vehicle safety into four phases:

During the journey, the vehicle helps the driver to identify critical situations swiftly and handle them safely. In the second phase, that is in the event of danger, preventive safety systems can prepare the vehicle and its occupants for an imminent collision. In the event of an accident, the occupants can benefit from effective, individualised protection provided by the comprehensive range of passive safety systems. Finally, the fourth component comprises the phase after an accident, when for example the hazard warning flashers are automatically activated to reduce the risk of new accidents. In addition, Mercedes-Benz has published comprehensive multilingual rescue guidelines (accessible worldwide on the internet) as a source of information for rescue services.