A safety device for the protection of pedestrians involved in a collision with a vehicle is arranged in the zone of the front hood of the vehicle. The safety device is in the form of a mechanism for raising the rear of the front hood, which mechanism can be triggered by a sensor installation arranged in the zone of the front bumper of the vehicle for detection of a collision with the pedestrian. Upon detection of a collision, the mechanism raises the front hood from a rest position to an impact position in which the potential for contact between the pedestrian's head and the windshield are reduced.