Why aren’t devices already standard?

I READ the tragic story about Mrs Naran and the death of her son by a HGV which hit his grandfather’s car, and I’m puzzled (“Bring in Dev’s law so no other family goes through what we have,” April 26).

The story says that the government are pondering the fitting of AEB (Atuomatic Emergency Breaking) to all new cars.

What they are thinking about is beyond me, except it seems to smack of the incompetence of the current government when it comes to caring about anything other than themselves.

Mrs Naran’s son was killed by an HGV. All HGVs built since 2015 have by legislation have to have AEB fitted as standard. Had the vehicle which committed this death been built in 2015, then this fatality would surely not have occurred.

If it is currently mandatory for an HGV to have AEB fitted, then why isn’t it mandatory on cars and vans?

Over 6,000 UK citizens have died in accidents in the UK since 2015.

Not all of them would have benefited from having ABE, but many would. How much more thinking does it take to decide to fit AEB to UK vehicles, when it’s already mandatory on HGVs and standard on many cars already?

However, her campaign is about fitting AEB to cars. I drive one of these wonders of engineering.

When I switch on my cruise control, which I do as soon as I start off driving, then the AEB kicks in.

No matter what speed I am driving, the technology slows me to a stop if I get near the car in front.

I can honestly say the technology saved my life on an occasion last winter when I was cut up by what turned out to be a drugged up driver (who then hit a lamp column).

It’s not rocket science (well, in part it is) to fit these wonders and how many lives would be saved if it were fitted as standard to every vehicle?

Not just when cruise control is switched on, either. Often I drive and think how much better and safer would my journey be if ABE worked all the time.

However, with a government more interested in bailing a clown out of Partygate, I suppose road safety doesn’t come very highly these days.

Robert Thomas, Botcheston