Put on that black cocktail dress and you'll exude elegance. Don that black tee and you'll make yourself a couple of pounds slimmer. Wear that silver earrings and you'll radiate sophistication. By the way, that silver pair of shoes could transform you into a jaw-dropping stunner. Sure, there are so many reasons to be thankful about black and silver colors.

Black and silver are two of the most elegant colors that we have. But do you know they could also mean death? Yes, death. The colors are said to be fatal colors for cars. A surge in the popularity of silver cars is endangering the lives of drivers choosing style over safety, reported Herald Sun.

Silver cars have been found to be 10% more likely to be involved in an accident than white cars, according to the Vehicle Color Study by the Monash University Accident Research Centre. Black vehicles are even more dangerous - with a 12% higher crash risk than white cars - therefore, the latest car fashions could have disastrous consequences.

Statistics show a third of all new cars are silver, while 1 in 5 are white. Fashion, prestige and resale value are said to be reasons fuelling the latest auto trend. But researcher Dr. Stuart Newstead said car buyers should instead be concerned about how easily they could be seen on the road.

"Even in good conditions silver has low contrast with the road environment," he said. "That lack of visibility is even worse in fading light or cloudy and wet conditions. Less visibility means less time for other drivers to react to an impending accident situation."

Conspicuity is a crucial factor that should be considered by car owners in purchasing a car. It is important that the car is still visible even in darkness; this is to prevent some road accidents from happening.

If passersby could see your car even at a distance, their instincts would make them stay away from it. Fellow drivers, on the other hand, could calculate their maneuvers well enough so as not to produce a collision.

Dr. Newstead said drivers of silver cars needed to be aware they might not be noticed as quickly as the drivers of other cars and should make allowances. "People need to think about making their silver cars more visible by installing daytime running lights or driving with their headlights on," Dr. Newstead said. "I hope, though, that ultimately safety will triumph over fashion and we will see more people selecting white."