You're kidding? After 20 seconds? Ridiculous. Most people would be getting out of the car to inspect damage and any injuries, not attending to their iPhone's urgent needs.
And if you do need to make a call, the emergency services would appreciate more information that what a recorded message blurts out. So most would call a second time after the initial time-waster bot call. I'm amazed this is allowed.
Also the fact it calls is incredibly useful if the driver can’t. They could be pinned, unconscious, or something else. But the phone has no way of knowing that. So either it calls and tries to help people (what they do), or the phone could do nothing leaving those who couldn’t call themselves helpless.
I'm not sure why you think questioning the default-on status of this feature is somehow an opposition to its potential usefulness in the extremely rare times you're unconscious or pinned AND nobody else is around to call. I mean, this article is about the phone calling emergency services from roller-coaster rides, which says it all. It should default to OFF. You have purchased an i Phone not an i Emergency Beacon.
In your view, how many false, unnecessary auto-calls from iOS to emergency are acceptable per year nationally, 50? 1000? 10000?
It's common to exit your car instinctively after an accident, then go back for phone. Many people keep their phones in their bag while driving.
After the initial call-triggering event, the hazard may not be over. You may need to move your car off the road, or any number of other safety-related post-accident actions.
There are more important things to take care of in the 20 seconds following an accident than tending to your phone apps.
What next? "child coughing detected, please take your medicine in 10,9,8...".