MTA July 2023 SA

8
INDUSTRY NEWS
Used Car Safety Ratings
Help Motorists Make
Safer Choices
MTA CEO, Darrell Jacobs.
segment and their safety rating,
based on police-reported crash
analysis of more than 9 million
vehicles across Australia and
New Zealand.
The MTA recently helped the State
Government to promote new safety
ratings for almost 400 vehicles
manufactured from the year 2000
onwards to help motorists make
safer car choices.
“Road safety is not only about driver
fatigue or speed – it’s also about
making sure you are driving a safe
vehicle,” MTA CEO Darrell Jacobs said.
“This is a great initiative and is
another step you can take in
addition to either purchasing
from a licensed dealer or having a
qualified mechanical inspection.
“It will help motorists make
informed decisions because
there can otherwise be pitfalls
from purchasing used cars privately.”
The Department for Infrastructure
and Transport, together with
the Monash University Accident
Research Centre (MUARC), has
released the latest used car safety
information to help people choose
the safest vehicle for their budget.
MTA CEO Darrell Jacobs made the
announcement with MTA Member
Maughan Thiem alongside Minister
for Police, Emergency Services and
Correctional Services Joe Szakacs
and Minister for Small and Family
Business and Minister for Consumer
and Business Affairs Andrea
Michaels.
As a guide to help used car buyers
prioritise safety, the Used Car Safety
Ratings lists 389 models by market
The ratings cover:
• Crashworthiness: the relative
safety of vehicles in preventing
death or serious injury to their
own drivers in crashes
• Aggressivity: the serious injury
risk vehicles pose to other road
users with whom they collide. This
includes unprotected road users
such as pedestrians, bicyclists
and motorcyclists and drivers of
other vehicles involved in a crash.
• Total Secondary Safety Index:
integrates into one measure
the combined Crashworthiness
and Aggressivity performance of
a vehicle.
There were 151,000 private
purchases of used cars compared
to 55,000 dealer used sales last year
in SA. These privately sold used cars
have no warranties and do not need
to be legally roadworthy.
In addition to practical steps like the
Used Car Safety Ratings, the MTA will
continue working with stakeholders
to develop a vehicle inspections
scheme at the change of ownership
to improve road safety and ensure
motorists are not being ripped off by
dodgy private sellers.
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