There are no guarantees but, from a safety point of view, give me a new train that's passed modern crash-worthiness standards over an HST any day; the risk is so, so much lower.
Yes mostly because, as much as people seem to be trying to ignore it(!), on a modern train like the 800 the cab is part of the structure of the train that is protected by crumple zones and similar mechanisms whilst on older trains, like the HST, the cab is very much part of the crumple zone!