You’ve got your sights set on that car. It’s the right price, looks good, and it’s the perfect size for what you need.  But there are two important factors you may not have thought about.

It is important that your vehicle offers you good protection from injury in a crash – but it is also important that your vehicle offers good protection to other road users, such as pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists or the drivers of other vehicles involved in a crash.  For example, SUVs are more likely to cause serious injuries to other road users in a crash than most other vehicle types.

The Used Car Safety Ratings Guide (PDF, 4185 KB) provides you with the crash safety rating for the driver.  Those vehicles with 5 stars, which also cause less serious injury to other road users, with which they collide, including other vehicle occupants, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, receive a bonus “Safe Pick” rating.  If you are serious about reducing road trauma you need to consider how your vehicle protects other road users as well as you, the driver.

Find out how the vehicle you are considering purchasing compares for safety. The guide gives safety ratings for popular vehicle models from 1991 to 2018.

Safety features that may significantly reduce the risk of death or serious injury include:

• crumple zones
• collapsible steering columns
• reinforced door frames
• front, side, curtain and knee airbags
• seat belts designed to work with airbags.

An increasing number of vehicles are being equipped with safety features that help drivers avoid a crash and these should be considered when purchasing a used car.  Some of these features are:

• Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
• Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
• Traction Control
• Brake Assist

Myths about vehicle safety

MYTH: You can take more risks if you’ve got a vehicle with safety features – they will save you in a crash.  FACT: While safety features are more likely to increase your chances of surviving a crash, they don’t make you indestructible.  Safety features won’t necessarily save you from death or serious injury, particularly at higher speeds or if you’re not wearing your seat belt.

MYTH: A safe vehicle is more expensive. 
FACT: Many reasonably priced vehicle models score very well in the safety ratings and better than some of the more expensive models.

MYTH: Older vehicles tend to be bigger and heavier, and therefore safer.
FACT: Older vehicles have been shown from crash records to be less safe on average than newer vehicles, due to fewer safety features and less sophisticated design.

How the safety ratings are calculated

Records from over 5 million vehicles in police-reported road crashes in Australia and New Zealand between 1996 and 2010 were analysed and calculated by Monash University’s Accident Research Centre. Vehicle safety ratings are influenced by:

• the vehicle’s mass
• the structural design of the body
• and safety features, such as airbags and types of seat belts.

The Used Car Safety Rating chart is updated yearly and is recalculated based on the most recent crash data available. The scores for each individual make/model are compared against the ratings for all other vehicles.

The ratings are about the risk of injury related to the vehicle in the event of a crash. The ratings were adjusted for factors such as: driver gender and age, type of road user involved, speed limit at the crash location, number of vehicles involved, crash configuration and year of crash.

What's the difference between these ratings and new car safety ratings?

New car safety ratings by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) are determined by crash testing vehicles in a controlled laboratory setting while the Used Car Safety Ratings are calculated using data from police reports on actual crashes.  Occupants of heavier vehicles in real-world two-vehicle crashes typically fare better than those in lighter vehicles.  This is why ANCAP crash test results should not be compared among vehicles with large weight differences.  In many single-vehicle crashes, greater weight offers no safety advantage.  ANCAP crash test ratings relate to occupant protection and the ability of the car to avoid a crash.  ANCAP has a separate rating for a vehicle’s ability to protect a pedestrian in a crash.  The Used Car Safety Ratings listed in this brochure can be compared across all categories as they are derived from reports of actual on-road crashes.

The ‘Safe Pick’ vehicles further identify vehicles that provide the best protection for both their own occupants and other road users in a crash.
Any vehicle safety rating system can only provide an indication of the relative levels of protection between vehicles you can expect in the event of a crash. Whether or not you die or are seriously injured in a crash also depends on how safely you drive your vehicle.

Newer vehicles are safer

An important finding of the Used Car Safety Ratings is that on average newer models provide their drivers with better protection from injury in a crash.  These improvements come from better structural designs, as well as the fitting of safety features such as front, side curtain and  knee airbags, more advanced seat belt systems and vehicle interiors built with plastics instead of steel, so that they provide padding when struck by a human occupant. 
While average vehicle safety levels have improved significantly over time, there is a large variation even between vehicle models of the same age. Furthermore, some vehicle models, including recent ones, provide good protection for their own drivers but present a relatively high risk of injury to other road users in a crash.  The Used Car Safety Ratings assist buyers to select vehicle models that provide the best protection for all road users including themselves.

Occupant protection in smaller vehicles has improved significantly in recent years.  Buyers considering a vehicle in the light and small categories should check its ANCAP rating and aim at a 5 star performance.