LEUVEN, BELGIUM – Hundreds of road deaths each year are being caused by weak rear impact safety guards that offer inadequate protection to drivers and passengers in incidents involving slowing or stationary trucks.

That is the conclusion from Euro NCAP and its collaborating safety organisations Germany’s ADAC, Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the US following a multi-phase testing campaign. The findings reveal weaknesses in the structural safety guards currently fitted to the rear of trucks and trailers across European and UK roads, and in certain cases vulnerabilities in some vehicles’ crash-avoidance systems.

The investigation was initiated and supported by National Highways in the UK and examines trailer rear underrun impacts – collisions where a passenger car slides directly beneath the back of a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) or trailer. This crash type can be devastating, potentially causing 400 fatalities across the EU and UK each year.

By conducting rigorous real-world track tests alongside controlled crash testing at international research facilities, Euro NCAP has exposed a troubling double-failure in modern road safety. First, the sensors of some older Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are failing to adequately “see” trailers in real-world environments. Second, the physical safety guards fitted to the rear of trucks and trailers are failing to stop cars from sliding beneath them in some circumstances when a collision occurs, which undermines the safety performance engineered into modern cars and leads to significant injuries and fatalities.

Yet a superior mechanical solution that can prevent rear underrun impacts already exists. In North America, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has established the voluntary TOUGHGUARD standard, which testing shows is far more effective at preventing underrun in a rear-end collision and is fitted by manufacturers to most new trailers in the US.

”Euro NCAP’s findings show the legislation behind Europe’s and the UK’s truck and trailer safety needs to be updated as a matter of urgency to help prevent this type of devasting impact. We also urge trailer manufacturers to proactively introduce voluntary upgrades and retrofit solutions for existing fleets. The good news is that the template already exists in the US with the IIHS’ TOUGHGUARD voluntary standard; the sooner the rear impact guards on Europe’s trucks and trailer are updated, the better, so potentially lives can be saved.”

— Matthew Avery, Director of Strategic Development Euro NCA

Notes to editors

National Highways in the UK initiated and supported the research based on analysis of collision data on the strategic road network.

Testing carried out in laboratories across the UK, Germany, and the US. Supporting organisations to Euro NCAP are Germany’s ADAC, Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the US.

For full results, visit www.euroncap.com or Euro NCAP’s newsroom for journalists.

For media information, please contact Cordelia Wilson at media@euroncap.com