Used fleet getting safer

The country’s fleet of second-hand vehicles is growing safer as reported in the latest Used Car Safety Ratings (UCSR). The ratings guide is updated annually and provides guidance on the performance of more than 220 models based on real-world crash data in New Zealand and Australia. The 2014 guide shows a record 51 per cent of 227 second-hand cars listed scored excellent or good ratings for driver protection in an accident –seven more vehicles than in 2013. Stella Stocks, the AA’s general manager of motoring services, says the better overall crash performance in used cars reflects the improvement of the fleet across Australasia with the addition of sophisticated safety features in new cars eventually filtering down to the second-hand market. “As more data is collected on vehicles in the guide, we’re able to provide motorists with the best information possible enabling them to buy the safest car they can afford,” she says. Celia Patrick, the NZTA’s general manager of access and use, urges used car buyers to buy the safest vehicle they can afford. “Motorists have a number of decisions as they consider options for their next cars, and for many price and functionality are usually top of the list,” she says. “The UCSR guide enables motorists to consider crash performance and driver protection across a variety of cars.” The guide also lists safe-pick grades in most categories. These are cars that provide excellent protection to the driver and cause less serious injury to other drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists in crashes. They are also fitted with electronic stability control (ESC), which helps avoid accidents and can reduce their severity if unavoidable. Stocks says there are affordable options among the safe-pick choices with some costing less than $10,000. About 15 per cent of the vehicles listed earned such as rating, while 75 models were in the poor or very poor categories. “Buyers should be looking for safety features, such as ESC and airbags throughout the car at a minimum. These devices save lives.” Stocks adds that in the years to come, the range of active safety-assist technologies (SATs) installed on new cars today will mean the second-hand market will have ever-increasing driver protection performance. The UCSR guide is based on reports from more than seven million crashes between 1987 and 2012 reported to police in New Zealand and Australia. They cover about 90 per cent of all popular passenger and light commercial vehicles made between 1982 and 2012.