UK campaign urges faster action on life-saving vehicle technologies

A new report from the UK road safety charity Brake shows strong public support for advanced vehicle safety features and calls on the government to speed up their introduction.

The research found that 87 percent of drivers say a vehicle’s safety rating is important when choosing a car. Two thirds of respondents said they would be willing to pay more for additional safety features, and 68 percent support making automatic emergency braking mandatory in all new vehicles.

Brake has written to the UK Transport Secretary urging the government to implement the latest EU General Safety Regulation updates within the British type approval system. The charity warns that delaying action risks widening the safety gap with the European Union, where many vehicle safety technologies are already required on new models.

According to the report, adopting the full package of safety features could prevent more than 1,700 deaths and 15,000 serious injuries over 16 years and save up to £7 billion in health costs.