How NCAP Safety Ratings Affect Your Next Car Purchase

In 1979, the US created the first NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) to give the public official crash test ratings. This helped raise awareness about car safety and gave buyers more information to make better decisions. Other regions like Europe, Asia, and Latin America followed suit with their own NCAP programs to provide similar safety information.

NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) safety ratings play a crucial role in helping car buyers and owners make informed decisions about vehicle safety. These ratings, based on independent crash tests, provide valuable insights into how well a car protects its occupants in an accident. Here’s how they make a difference:

1. Helps Buyers Choose Safer Cars

NCAP ratings allow car buyers to compare vehicles based on safety performance. A higher rating generally means better crash protection, advanced safety features, and a lower risk of injury in an accident. Whether you're buying a new or used car, knowing the safety rating helps you choose a vehicle that offers the best protection for you and your passengers.

2. Encourages Car Manufacturers to Improve Safety

Because NCAP ratings are widely publicised, car manufacturers have an incentive to improve their vehicles’ safety features to achieve higher scores. Over the years, this has led to better crash protection, stronger vehicle structures, and the inclusion of advanced safety technologies like automatic emergency braking and lane-keeping assist.

3. Impacts Insurance Costs

Many insurers take NCAP ratings into account when calculating car insurance premiums. Vehicles with higher safety ratings may qualify for lower premiums because they are less likely to result in severe injuries or fatalities in a crash, reducing the insurer’s risk.

4. Raises Awareness of Road Safety

By making safety ratings easily accessible, NCAP programs help educate the public about the importance of crash protection and advanced safety features. This can shift consumer demand toward safer cars, ultimately leading to fewer road fatalities and injuries.

5. Influences Safety Regulations

In some countries, NCAP findings have directly influenced government policies and vehicle safety laws. Even in South Africa, where there is no local NCAP program, the Safer Cars for Africa initiative has exposed dangerously unsafe vehicles, leading to some models being discontinued or improved.

Understanding safety ratings in new and pre-owned cars

For a car buyer, whether purchasing a new or pre-owned vehicle, understanding the differences between NCAP ratings and how safety is tested is important for making an informed decision. Here's why it matters: 

1. Inconsistent NCAP Ratings Across Countries:

Although NCAP ratings use a 5-star system, the tests are not identical across different countries. This means a car that scored highly in its country of origin may not perform the same way in other countries due to differences in specifications, such as safety features or body structure. For example, a car imported to South Africa might not have the same safety rating as the one tested in the country it was originally manufactured. As a buyer, you need to be aware that the rating might not reflect the actual safety of the vehicle you're considering if its specifications differ.

2. Changes Over Time:

Car manufacturers update vehicle models regularly to keep them competitive. These changes may include a car's safety features, potentially boosting its NCAP rating. However, if you're buying a used car, you should be aware that an older model might have a different rating than a newer one, even though it may seem like the same car. Also, as NCAP testing standards evolve, a car that once had a high rating might lose points in later tests if it hasn't been updated with the latest safety features.

3. SA-Specific Safety Considerations:

While South Africa doesn’t have its own NCAP program, the country follows regulations similar to European standards, ensuring that cars sold here meet basic safety requirements. However, without comprehensive safety ratings for many locally sold cars, South African buyers often rely on ratings from other countries, which might not be fully applicable to the specific models sold here. This is particularly true for imported vehicles, where the car's specifications may differ from the version tested overseas, leading to a mismatch between the NCAP rating and the car's actual safety performance in South Africa.

4. The "Safer Cars for Africa" Initiative:

This project, launched by Global NCAP and the Automobile Association of South Africa (AA), aims to improve car safety across the continent. However, it has tested relatively few vehicles, meaning that many cars on the South African market still lack independently verified, comparable safety ratings. Without this information, South African buyers are left making decisions based on brand reputation or overseas NCAP ratings, which may not be relevant to the cars available locally.

You can view the latest crash test results online.

5. The Need for Transparency:

The lack of transparent information about vehicle safety in South Africa, especially for lower-priced cars, means that buyers are often in the dark about whether the car they’re considering is as safe as it could be. This is especially concerning because South Africa has one of the highest road death tolls globally, and car buyers deserve the right to choose the safest vehicle they can afford.

Moving forward with car safety

Whether you're buying a new or pre-owned vehicle, understanding NCAP ratings is key to ensuring you choose a car with proven safety performance. In South Africa, where road accidents are a major concern, opting for a safer vehicle could be a life-saving decision. In addition, if you're financing and insuring your car, prioritising safety features could also help you avoid bigger costs in the long run.