NHTSA announces key changes to 5-Star Safety Ratings program – see what has changed

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced key updates to its consumer-facing 5-Star Safety Ratings program.

In a press release on 18 November, the agency said the move was in a bid to reduce the number of deaths on American roads due to accidents.

Known as the New Car Assessment Program, or NCAP, the updated program proposes new strategies and technologies to protect people both inside and outside a vehicle. 

Addressing road crisis

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is a unit of the U.S. Department of Transportation responsible for ensuring safety on American highways.

By updating the 5-Star Safety Ratings program, the agency is introducing new changes to address the crisis on the country’s roads. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said:

“This action today is another important step toward addressing the crisis on our roads and achieving the Department’s ambitious, long-term goal of zero road fatalities. Like our move earlier this year to make automatic emergency braking standard on new passenger cars and light trucks, these changes to the 5-Star Safety Ratings will speed up adoption of technologies that reduce the frequency and severity of crashes while helping consumers make informed decisions about buying a new car.”

Major changes to the program include the addition of pedestrian automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assist, blind spot warning, and blind spot intervention to enhance crash avoidance safety.

The new program also significantly improved testing procedures and performance criteria for advanced driver assistance technologies such as automatic emergency braking. 

Thirdly, it brings addition of a crashworthiness pedestrian protection program to evaluate the ability of a vehicle’s to mitigate pedestrian injuries and fatalities in vehicle-to-pedestrian impacts.

In addition, the NCAP makes room for future updates coming from ongoing research and technological advancements in vehicle safety.

Helping consumers choose safer vehicles

The NHTSA says the program also helps consumers to make informed decisions and choose safer vehicles in the future.

It is also an initiative to encourage manufacturers to improve vehicle safety to cut the rate of deaths due to road accidents.