NHTSA Delays Updates to the Five-Star Safety Rating Program
Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829
Washington, DC— The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) postponed the effective date of updates to the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), which is a Five-Star Safety Rating Program that provides consumers with important information to compare the safety of different vehicles.
“Safety delayed is safety denied,” said Daniel Greene, the Senior Director of Consumer Protection & Product Safety. “NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program should be a valuable tool of illumination, providing consumers with vital information necessary to compare the safety of different vehicles. Regrettably, the five-star safety rating has become a mere participation trophy, with nearly all manufacturers earning four or five stars. NHTSA must abide by the law and consumer consensus and update NCAP.”
As required by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, NHTSA updated NCAP in 2024 to establish pedestrian crashworthiness ratings, update automatic emergency brake ratings, and create ratings for blind spot warning, blind spot intervention, lane keeping assist, and pedestrian automatic emergency braking. In response to a request from the automobile manufacturers’ trade association, NHTSA has postponed the effective date of these updates for one model year.
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