December 11, 2015

Washington, DC—Four national consumer advocacy organizations – Consumers Union, Public Citizen, Advocates For Highway and Auto Safety, and National Consumers League – are asking General Motors CEO Mary Barra to address the glaring absence of basic safety equipment – like seat belts – in GM cars sold in Latin American in a letter sent this week. The letter stated:

“We were surprised and disappointed to learn of the poor performance of General Motors (GM) in auto safety tests conducted by the New Car Assessment Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean (Latin NCAP). These results are directly related to GM’s failure to provide the same safety technologies on cars sold in Latin America as the company provides as standard equipment in cars sold in the US market. We are specifically referring to basic safety features, such as airbags, but also newer life-saving technologies like electronic stability control and pre-tensioned seat belts, all of which are fitted as standard on GM vehicles in the US.”

The American consumer groups’ letter came in response to the Nov. 16 release of crash test safety results by the New Car Assessment Programme for Latin America and the Carribbean (Latin NCAP). In those tests, GM’s Chevrolet Aveo, the best-selling car in Mexico that is sold throughout Latin America, scored zero stars for protecting adults and only two stars for protecting child passengers. Latin NCAP described the model as demonstrating a “high risk of life-threatening injuries.”

Latin NCAP tested the basic version of the Aveo, which is sold in Latin America without airbags. Despite recent commitments from GM to become an industry leader on safety, Chevrolet has performed consistently poorly in Latin NCAP tests over a number of years, and ranks 8^th out of 11 leading car manufacturers in the region. Only three Chinese brands averaged worse scores over a five-year period of Latin NCAP tests.

The groups’ letter noted: 

“Auto safety cannot only be for citizens living in wealthy countries; yet GM’s practice of providing some consumers with the best safety technologies, while not even providing airbags to others, strikes us as a morally indefensible decision.”  …. [I]n your capacity as CEO you have stated your commitment to auto safety technologies and doing right by consumers, and we think this is an issue that deserves your attention.”

The four American groups are aligned with Consumers International (CI) in calling for universal adoption of minimum United Nations Vehicle safety regulations by governments and voluntary compliance by car manufacturers as soon as possible. Cars scoring zero in NCAP tests fail these internationally recognized minimum safety standards.

Research commissioned by Global NCAP found that more than 380,000 deaths and serious injuries could be prevented by 2030 in Brazil alone if it adopted key UN regulations within a reasonable timeframe.

According to the World Health Organization:

• 1.3 million people died and 50 million people were injured on roads in 2013. Unsafe cars are a major contributor to this statistic. Fifty percent of those affected were vehicle occupants. This disparity in access to safety technologies has real consequences, and contributes to unacceptable burden of road crash deaths and injuries highlighted by the World Health Organization and referenced by Consumers International in its letter. 

• Road traffic deaths are now the 9^th biggest killer globally, and are predicted to become the 7^th biggest killer worldwide by 2030 unless urgent action is taken.

The groups also told Barra, “As CEO, you can demonstrate to all consumers concern for their safety and play a leading role in ensuring all vehicles comply with these safety standards regardless of where they are sold.” 

Photos of the test results are included below. 

 

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

December 4, 2015

Mary Barra
Chief Executive Officer
General Motors
300 Renaissance Centre
Detroit, MI 48265, 

Re: GM adding same safety technology to all vehicles made and sold anywhere per UN Car Safety Regulations

Dear Ms. Barra: 

We write as American consumer organizations with a history of working on auto safety. We wish to reference the recent letter you received from Consumers International, which is attached here.

We were surprised and disappointed to learn from our consumer colleagues in Latin America of the poor performance of General Motors’ (GM)  in auto safety tests conducted by the New Car Assessment Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean (Latin NCAP). These results are directly related to GM’s failure to provide the same safety technologies on cars sold in Latin America as the company provides as standard equipment in cars sold in the US market. We are specifically referring to basic safety features, such as airbags, but also newer life-saving technologies like electronic stability control and pre-tensioned seat belts, all of which are fitted as standard on GM vehicles in the US.

Indeed, the Chevrolet Aveo received a zero rating in Latin NCAP’s most recent independent crash test results, and was described as representing a “high risk of life threatening injury” in Latin America. In addition, the Chevrolet brand has shown the poorest performance of all the major global car manufacturers tested by Latin NCAP since 2010.  The basic model of the Aveo available to consumers in Latin American countries – such as Mexico (where the car is both manufactured and the top-selling model)- lacks even basic safety features, such as airbags, putting occupants at great risk. We find that information shocking.

As American consumers, we appreciate the enhanced protections these technologies provide in saving lives and preventing injuries in the US. But we find it hard to fathom that GM would not provide all consumers – no matter where they live around the world – with these same protective technologies.

Auto safety cannot only be for citizens living in wealthy countries; yet GM’s practice of providing some consumers with the best safety technologies, while not even providing airbags to others, strikes us as a morally indefensible decision. Ms. Barra, GM is not alone in this practice, but in your capacity as CEO you have stated your commitment to auto safety technologies and doing right by consumers, and we think this is an issue that deserves your attention.

Just last month, on the occasion of the 2^nd Global High Level Conference on Road Safety, governments from around the world adopted a declaration for all new motor vehicles to meet minimum safety regulations:

“Promote the adoption of policies and measures to implement United Nations vehicle safety regulations or equivalent national standards to ensure that all new motor vehicles meet applicable minimum regulations for occupant and other road users protection, with seat belts, air bags and active safety systems such as anti-lock braking system (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC) fitted as standard.”

At this propitious time, we are calling on each of the world’s largest car manufacturers to commit to comply with the UN Vehicle Safety regulations for all new cars, regardless of where they are sold.

This is particularly relevant to General Motors, as Latin NCAP has ranked it 8th out of 11 leading car manufacturers in Latin America, in terms of safety, and is the worst performing of any global manufacturer.

This disparity in access to safety technologies has real consequences, with an unacceptable burden of road crash deaths and injuries highlighted by the World Health Organization and referenced by Consumers International in its letter.  

The WHO has reported that:

• 1.3 million people died and 50 million people were injured on roads in 2013. Unsafe cars are a major contributor to this statistic. 50% of those affected were vehicle occupants. This disparity in access to safety technologies has real consequences, and contributes to unacceptable burden of road crash deaths and injuries highlighted by the World Health Organization and referenced by Consumers International in its letter. 

• Road traffic deaths are now the 9th biggest killer globally, and are predicted to become the 7th biggest killer worldwide by 2030 unless urgent action is taken.

The top ten car manufacturers accounted for 78% of all cars produced in 2013. It is clear that manufacturers like GM have an essential role to play in reducing traffic fatalities and injuries. 

The US is today one of the world leaders in providing consumers access to state-of-the-art safety equipment on all of our cars. As CEO, you can demonstrate to all consumers concern for their safety and play a leading role in ensuring all vehicles comply with these safety standards regardless of where they are sold. Applying these regulations voluntarily will help increase trust and confidence worldwide in the safety of your cars, and most importantly, save many thousands of lives. 

Thank you for your attention to our concerns. We would be happy to discuss further with you or your staff.

Yours Sincerely,

Ellen Bloom
Director, Federal Policy and Washington Office at Consumers Union
Consumers Union

Robert Weissman
President
Public Citizen

Jackie Gillan
President
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety

Sally Greenberg
Executive Director
National Consumers League

November 6, 2015

Contact: Child Labor Coalition Coordinator Reid Maki, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org

Washington, DC—The Child Labor Coalition (CLC) laments the tragic deaths that occurred Wednesday in the collapse of a plastic-bag factory in Lahore, Pakistan. At least 23 workers died in the factory, including an unknown number of child workers. Rescuers have pulled more than 100 survivors from the rubble, but dozens of other workers still trapped are thought to remain.

Although the details are still not yet fully known, a young boy working in the factory who survived the incident told reporters that dozens of children were among the 150 workers trapped in the collapsed building. Several reports mentioned children as young as 12 working in the factory.

South Asia has been the scene of a number of factory tragedies in recent years. In 2013, more than 1,100 workers died in the Rana factory collapse in Dhaka, Bangladesh. In 2012, more than 100 workers died in the Tazreen fire just outside of Dhaka. That same year, 289 people were killed in a fire in Karachi, Pakistan, and on the same day, a shoe factory fire in Lahore killed 25 workers.

“This latest Lahore collapse highlights the vulnerability of factory workers,” said Sally Greenberg, co-chair of the CLC and executive director of the National Consumers League. “Factories must be inspected regularly, and officials should be on the constant lookout for children working in these unsafe environments. Young children should not be dying in factory collapses; they should not be working in factories at all. Western consumers bear some responsibility for creating the awful conditions that lead to these tragedies because of the constant demand for the cheapest-possible products produced at great speed.” 

“The conditions that lead to these kinds of tragedies are a violation of human rights, they are avoidable, and they must stop,” said Dr. Lorretta Johnson, secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers, a co-chair of the Child Labor Coalition.  “We know that change is possible, and we call upon the government of Pakistan to press its efforts to ensure a culture of rights, not only through inspection and monitoring of factories, but also by the critical elimination of exploitative child labor.”