SAFETY COMPARISON NOW AVAILABLE FOR VANS

It has long been accepted that researching passenger vehicles incorporates analysing ANCAP (Australasian New Car Assessment programme) safety results, which are modelled alongside the European New Car Assessment programme (EURONCAP).

In December 2020 ANCAP introduced a comparative safety guide for commercial vehicles.

The recently released second series of comparative tests was released in February, focusing on the availability and performance of active safety systems including Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS).

“This analysis provides added value to fleet and commercial van operators extending beyond ANCAP’S traditional star rating program to shine a light on the active safety performance of an important segment,” said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Carla Hoorweg.

“Vans are a workplace. Their increased on-road exposure and frequent use in built-up urban areas means they interact with other vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists. It is essential that fleet and van operators are aware of the crash avoidance capabilities and active safety features fitted to their vehicles.”

Unlike the ANCAP passenger results measured in stars, the commercial comparisons use Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze or Not recommended to determine the effectiveness and availability of the systems across a total of 16 van models.

“The information provided in this latest comparison report highlights the differences in safety specification and the varying levels of active safety performance across van models.

“It is encouraging to see the full suite of active safety features now standard in a number of vans and we encourage brands to continue updating the safety specification of their vans as they would with passenger vehicles,” Ms Hoorweg said.

The updated Commercial Van Safety Comparison report is available at www.ancap.com.au/vans.