Car safety ratings

Safety is one of the most important factors to consider when you're buying a new car. Luckily for drivers across the world (including in Australia), there is a safety rating score which tells us exactly how safe a vehicle is before we buy it.

The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) rates cars from 1 to 5 in terms of safety, with a 5-star rating for the safest vehicles tested.

If you’re buying a new vehicle and want to know what level of protection that car would offer in a collision or other accident, the ANCAP safety rating provides a simple guide for comparing different cars.

What is ANCAP?

ANCAP is the leading independent vehicle safety organisation in Australia and New Zealand. It has been operating since 1992 and aims to provide consumers with clear, objective information about the safety levels of new passenger and light commercial vehicles.

It is also 1 of 9 New Car Assessment Programs (NCAPs) in the world, with others covering markets in Europe, the United States, Japan, Korea, China, Latin America and South East Asia.

ANCAP partners

ANCAP has 21 member organisations around Australia that support the work it does. These organisations include:

• Australian federal, state and territory governments
• The New Zealand Government
• The Transport Accident Commission (TAC)
• Australian and New Zealand automobile clubs, including NRMA, RACQ and RACV
• The FIA Foundation (UK)

What are vehicle safety ratings?

Safety ratings are designed to help you make more informed decisions about the vehicle you buy in a simple way. When a car has been tested by ANCAP, it receives a star rating that could help you choose a car. If you want more details or have particular concerns, you can also get details on how it performed in different tests.

ANCAP's safety testing process

ANCAP conducts crash tests on new passenger and light commercial vehicles entering the Australian and New Zealand markets. Each model’s safety levels assessed under identical testing standards and conditions.

ANCAP safety ratings consider the level of protection for drivers, passengers and pedestrians involved in the most common types of crashes, with 4 key areas of assessment:

1. Adult occupant protection
2. Child occupant protection
3. Vulnerable road user protection
4. Safety assist

As well as crash and impact tests, the assessment also considers safety features and technologies in new vehicles. The ratings are only used to compare vehicles in the same category (small car vs small car, large car vs large car, SUV vs SUV, etc).

Using results from these tests, ANCAP publishes safety ratings using a rating system from 1 to 5 stars, with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest. To receive the maximum 5-star ANCAP safety rating, a vehicle must achieve the highest standards in all crash tests and also feature advanced safety assist technologies.

What does the crash testing process involve?

ANCAP uses a number of internationally recognised crash tests and safety assessments carried out by independent specialist laboratories. These tests are designed to mimic the most common real-world crashes and dummies are used to scientifically measure the forces on occupants and pedestrians when such crashes occur.

The tests performed on new vehicles include:

• Side impact test. Designed to simulate 2 cars colliding at an angle, the side impact test is carried out by ramming a 1,400kg trolley with a crushable aluminium face into the side of the test car at 60km/h.
• Full-width frontal impact test. This is designed to simulate a head-on crash with another car travelling at the same speed. The test vehicle, which carries 2 adult dummies, travels at 50km/h into a solid wall with no deformable barrier.
• Oblique pole side impact test. This test is designed to simulate an accident where a car crashes into a fixed object, such as a tree or pole. It’s conducted by propelling the test car sideways at a speed of 32 km/h at a 75-degree angle into a rigid pole aligned with the driver’s head.
• Whiplash test. Designed to assess head and neck injuries resulting from a rear-impact collision, this test sees the car’s seat mounted to a test sled. The sled is then propelled forward to simulate a stationary vehicle being hit from behind.
• Child occupant protection tests. This testing uses dummies that represent a 6 year old and a 10 year old with the required seating and restraints. The dummies are put in place and then their safety is assessed using frontal impact and side impact tests, as well as inspections.

What car safety technology does ANCAP consider?

Car safety ratings used to focus on airbags, seatbelts and other passive safety features. However, recent advances in automotive technology have seen new cars fitted with advanced safety assist technologies that can actively help drivers avoid a collision.

As a result, ANCAP safety ratings also take into account the inclusion of safety equipment and technologies, including:

• Electronic stability control (ESC)
• Antilock braking systems (ABS)
• Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
• Lane departure warning (LDW)
• Blind spot monitoring (BSM)
• Fatigue monitoring systems (FMS)

ANCAP car safety ratings explained

The higher the ANCAP safety rating, the safer a car is. In fact, research has shown that you have twice the chance of being killed or seriously injured in a 3-star ANCAP safety-rated car compared to a 5-star ANCAP safety-rated car.

But what exactly does each star rating mean for the driver and passenger in the event of a collision? Here is a breakdown of the scoring system based on ANCAP's evaluation criteria and how much a vehicle needs to get to receive five stars.

Check your car's ANCAP safety rating

Frequently asked questions

• What types of crashes are most likely to cause serious injury or death?

  Frontal and side-impact crashes account for most deaths and serious injuries, according to ANCAP. The speed and size of vehicles can also influence the severity, which is why ANCAP safety testing has set requirements for these factors.

• Why doesn’t ANCAP test for rear-end collisions?

  While rear-end collisions are common, severe rear-end collisions are a rare occurrence compared to frontal and side-impact collisions. But since 2011 ANCAP has carried out whiplash tests to assess vehicle seats when a car is hit from the rear.

• Are the cars that ANCAP tests the same cars that I can buy from my local dealership?

  Yes. The vehicles ANCAP uses in crash tests are either purchased from dealerships or taken straight from the car manufacturer’s production line.

• Will ANCAP be introducing any new safety ratings or tests to further gauge safety?

  Yes. The current ANCAP star-rating system is in place until 2025. It already has some basic details for the future protocols that will be used between 2026 and 2028.

Written by

Alex Jeffs

Publisher

Alex Jeffs is the senior publisher for automotive content at Finder. He has tested vehicles everywhere from Tasmania to Oodnadatta. See full bio

Alex's expertise

Alex has written 63 Finder guides across topics including:

• Automotive industry
• Car finance
• Car insurance
• Personal finance