Since 1993, ANCAP has published crash test results for over 590 passenger and light commercial vehicles sold in Australia and New Zealand.

Vehicles are awarded an ANCAP safety rating of between one to five stars, indicating the level of safety they provide in the event of a crash.

The more stars, the better the vehicle performed in ANCAP tests.

To achieve the maximum five star ANCAP safety rating, a vehicle must achieve the highest standards in all tests and feature advanced safety assist technologies (SAT).

In 2016-2017 alone ANCAP crashed 142 vehicles. The average cost to produce a single ANCAP rating is $388000, and 92 per cent of all new cars sold in Australia have an ANCAP rating.

NSW Roads, Maritime and Freight minister, Melinda Pavey recently announced increased funding for ANCAP’s crashlab to enhance local crash test capability to assist with independent testing of autonomous vehicle safety technologies.

The Government is investing $1.6 million to upgrade the existing crashlab test facility to enable the assessment of autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems and other advanced driver assistance systems.

I recently interviewed ANCAP CEO, James Goodwin. He said that from the beginning of 2018 to attain a maximum five stars, new cars would need to come equipped with all the most advanced electronic safety and driver aids.

If you are buying a car, the first thing to check is its ANCAP rating. It may well save your life.Well done ANCAP. Keep up the great work.

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