Why vehicle safety ratings matter

Our latest long weekend coincides with research highlighting the importance of driving a vehicle that'll effectively protect its occupants in a crash, writes Senior Manager Road Safety at Waka Kotahi, Fabian Marsh .

This coming long weekend will be the first King’s Birthday weekend in New Zealand since 1951.

At the end of 1951 we experienced 292 deaths on our roads—too high, but less than 2022 when there were 377 deaths. Thankfully, findings from our latest?Public Attitudes to Road Safety - 2022?Report?published in April show some positive shifts toward driving?down road trauma.?

The survey provides key insights into public views about road safety, which includes a growing realisation of the importance of having a car with a high star safety rating—an independently assessed gauge of how well a car will protect its occupants in a crash.?

A total of 48% of respondents believe it’s very important their car has a high star rating, up 6% on the previous year.?Another 26% viewed their car’s star rating as “quite important”.

Crash analysis data shows people are twice as safe in a 5-star vehicle than in a 1-star vehicle. Safer vehicles better protect their occupants and other road users if there's a crash, and they have features which help avoid crashes too.

A recent study for Waka Kotahi undertaken by researchers at WSP shows that typically, those who know the rating of their car report they drive a 4- or 5-star car. However there is more work to be done among those drivers of 1- and 2-star safety rated cars, which make up about 40% of all light vehicles across the country. The study showed that 86% of the more than 12,000 surveyed owners of such vehicles either didn't know the current rating or overestimated it.?

This means there's a potentially life-saving knowledge gap for many Kiwis. We encourage consumer uptake of higher-rated vehicles, which are available across all price brackets.?We urge motor vehicle dealers to be proactive?to help address this gap too.?

The research is already helping refine our work to inform people about safety ratings and safety features, which anyone can find on rightcar.govt.nz?alongside information on the Clean Car Discount and environmental ratings.?

A key positive to build on from the report is that 95% of owners of 1- and 2-star cars who did understand their vehicle’s safety rating would buy a safer car next time. These people were also likely to scrap their car rather than sell it when they next upgraded.

As part of the Road to Zero 2023-2025 Action Plan, which includes an objective of improving the safety performance of the vehicle fleet, we want to raise the safety standards of vehicles entering the country.

In addition, we want to raise the safety standards of vehicles currently on our roads by exploring options to exit 1- and 2-star safety-rated vehicles from the existing fleet.?

That’s part of the plan that'll take us through to the middle of the decade when a couple more King’s Birthday weekends would've passed. Until then, check your vehicle’s safety rating at?rightcar.govt.nz?and enjoy this holiday weekend.

Fabian Marsh?is Senior Manager Road Safety at Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency.