Have you thought about your car and your chance of surviving in a crash? ANCAP wants motorists to think about how their choice of vehicle could determine their survival if they were ever in a crash.
Recent data has backed up theories relating to vehicle age and frequency of fatalaties. Simply put the older the car, the more likely you are to involved in a fatal car crash. Below NHTSA’s data breaks down the frequency of fatalities in crashes by model year:
- 1984 and earlier: 55%
- 1985-1992: 53%
- 1993-1997: 46%
- 1997-2002: 42%
- 2003-2007: 36%
- 2008-2012: 31%
- 2013-2017: 26%
“Using the most recent fatal crash data, this analysis supports previous research in finding that a higher proportion of the occupants of older MY vehicles suffered a fatal injury,” the study said.
“In addition, the proportion of vehicle occupants who were fatally injured increases with the age of the vehicle.”
A new campaign from ANCAP, the first of its kind, focuses on the vehicle as a life-saving factor.
“Many road safety campaigns have tended to focus on behavioural aspects such as speed, fatigue, drink driving and enforcement. They remain vital, however this campaign highlights the importance of choosing a safer vehicle,” ANCAP Chief Executive, James Goodwin.
“We also want to draw attention to the fact that older vehicles (those built 2001 or earlier) are over-represented in fatal vehicle crashes, which is why this campaign also establishes the call to improve the affordability of newer, safer vehicles and encourage fleet renewal.”
Two parallel television commercials are airing across Queensland, the ACT, Tasmania, Victoria, the Northern Territory and South Australia, with remaining states to air the advertisements in the coming months.
