ETSC: Mutual Recognition Deal with U.S. Will Cost Lives on Europe’s Roads

The EU and the US have published a Joint Statement on transatlantic trade and investment that says, with respect to automobiles, the United States and the European Union “intend to accept and provide mutual recognition to each other’s standards”.

Antonio Avenoso, Executive Director of the European Transport Safety Council said:

“By signing up to mutual recognition of vehicle standards with the United States, the European Union has waved the white flag on road safety. This is not a technical detail – it is a political choice that puts trade convenience ahead of saving lives.

“Europe’s mandatory requirements for life-saving technologies such as automated emergency braking, lane-keeping assistance and pedestrian protection have made our cars safer and our roads less deadly. None of these protections are guaranteed under U.S. rules.

“Allowing American vehicles onto the EU market on the basis of ‘mutual recognition’ of standards is a betrayal of Europe’s safety leadership, and it will cost lives. Europe now risks being flooded with oversized, under-regulated U.S. pick-up trucks and SUVs – vehicles that are heavier, more dangerous to other car drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, and completely out of step with Europe’s vision for safer, more sustainable mobility.”