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The labels, similar to energy rating stickers for appliances, will be fitted to thousands of new vehicles through 50 Melbourne and Geelong new car dealers. The labels are part of a six-month pilot program called stars on cars being promoted by VicRoads, the TAC and the RACV.
If successful, the program is expected to roll out across the country.
Western Australia has already adopted the tags, where research shows that 5 per cent of WA car buyers changed their buying choice after reading the sticker.The labels display crash information from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program.
Only vehicles with a four or five-star crash rating will wear the label. It is the first time such a program has run in Victoria, according to ANCAP council chair and VicRoads manager, vehicle safety, Ross McArthur.
Volkswagen, Hyundai, Subaru and Skoda are involved and the TAC's manager for road safety, Samantha Cockfield, says other brands are watching to see how the scheme goes. "Our hope too is that it will become state-wide," she said. "We're sure it will have a powerful effect on consumers buying behaviour."
Cockfield says the safety sticker will help buyers make an informed choice. "The new car market is more complex and it's increasingly difficult for consumers to make decision," she says. "We know that if we put everyone in the safest cars overnight, we could reduce death and injury by a third."
Research by the Monash University Accident Research Centre shows that the risk of being killed or seriously injured in a crash varies by up to five times, depending on the car you drive. "You are more likely to survive a serious crash when you're driving the safest cars on the road compared to the least safe," Cockfield says.
Cockfield says safety is also becoming a more important factor in buying a new car. "It's the second most important factor after price when buying car," she said. "That's why its so important that people actively look for 4 or 5 star rated cars."
Over the past five years the average ANCAP crash rating has moved from three stars to 4.5 stars. The RACV's chief engineer Michael Case, says ANCAP is now widely accepted by the car industry and consumers. "Initially carmakers resisted it but now they accept it," he says. "It has been around for 16 years."
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