Vehicle safety gets a boost

The RAC has helped secure a $5million funding boost for the crash testing of new cars in Australia.

The Federal Government today announced that it will make the funds available to the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) over the next five years.

The RAC welcomed the Federal government’s decision to fund the program, a move which will ultimately help reduce the enormous social and economic cost of road trauma on Australian roads.

ANCAP is better known by Western Australian motorists for the “Stars on Cars” rating system which scores the safety performance and features of new vehicles on a one-to-five star basis.

The new funding will go towards increasing the number of crash tests carried out by ANCAP. Each crash test is carried out under strict protocols at a cost of approximately $200,000 per test.

Federal funding for ANCAP was high on the list of priorities when RAC President Alden Halse visited Canberra in late 2009 to lobby for improved road safety.

The RAC promotes the move toward safer vehicles through ANCAP and the Used Car Safety Ratings which help educate motorists to make better decisions about the safety of the cars they buy.

“Vehicle safety is an important issue for Australian motorists and with additional funding for more testing consumers will hopefully be able to make more informed choices,” RAC Head of Member Advocacy Matt Brown said.

Download the release (pdf)