Euro NCAP and Thatcham Research recently conducted safety tests on 19 of the most popular commercial vans, and the results are worrying.
Euro NCAP tested 19 commercial vans making up 98% of sales in Europe last year. EuroNCAP tested the vans to determine various driver-assistance systems’ performance, including Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), lane-keep assist, speed assistance, and occupant state monitoring.
Out of these 19 models, only three performed exceptionally and received a ‘Gold’ rating — the Mercedes Vito, Volkswagen Transporter, and Ford Transit.
Meanwhile, only five vans received a ‘Silver’ rating — Ford Transit Custom, Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, Peugeot Expert, Vauxhall Vivaro, and Volkswagen Crafter. Lastly, six models got a ‘Bronze’ rating, namely the Citroën Jumper and Jumpy, FIAT Ducato, Iveco Daily, Peugeot Boxer, and the Toyota PROACE.
What’s more disappointing is that five vans didn’t even achieve a ‘Bronze’ rating — the FIAT Talento, Opel Movano, Nissan NV400, the Renault Master, and Renault Trafic. EuroNCAP grouped these vans under the ‘Not Recommended’ category.
The research was particularly important this year. There has been an increase in the demand for delivery vehicles during the pandemic, especially commercial vans. But as the report identified, most modern vans don’t have the same safety systems as passenger cars.
According to Thatcher Research, only a small percent of commercial vans are equipped with AEB, a technology that warns the driver of impending collisions and activates the brakes when necessary.
Michiel van Ratingen, the Secretary-General of Euro NCAP, said there is an evident lack of safety systems in the segment. He added that automakers have to take responsibility and offer more safety features to this segment.
That being said, all new commercial vans will need to have state-of-the-art driver-assistance systems (ADAS) by 2024, according to the latest European Legislation.
Consequently, it’s safe to assume that commercial vans should perform a lot better on future Euro NCAP tests.
