AUTOFORUM - Informed and innovative

Calls For Standard AEB In The EU

Feb 15, 2016 AEB, WhatCar? RoadSafety, Thatcham, EuroNcap


According to the British online magazine WhatCar?, thousands of lives could be saved by a new piece of automotive technology that costs manufacturers just £40 (around R920).

Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems use a combination of laser, radar and cameras to detect an imminent collision, warn the driver and apply the brakes. If the driver fails to respond, the system can even bring the car to a complete halt.

Currently available as standard or as an option on 95% of new cars in Europe**, AEB could reduce fatal crashes by 20-25% and accidents in which an injury is sustained by 25-35%.*** Despite that, where AEB is a cost option, only 1.6% of buyers in the UK will tick the box to add it.

The magazine has, alongside leading safety and research bodies such as Thatcham and Euro NCAP, been leading the call for AEB to be fitted as standard to all new cars. Jim Holder, editorial director commneted: “When seatbelts became compulsory for front seat occupants of cars in 1983, the number of drivers killed or seriously injured dropped dramatically, almost overnight.

“The evidence is irrefutable – AEB saves lives. Just as all new cars now come with stability control, so autonomous emergency braking should be standard fit for all mainstream cars.”

To see the full What Car? feature about AEB, please visit whatcar.com.


** Source: Euro NCAP

*** Research by the University of Adelaide in Australia examined 104 crashes to estimate how AEB could have reduced collision speeds and the risk of injury. It concluded that AEB could reduce fatal crashes by 20-25%, and that crashes where injury occurred could have been reduced by 25-35%.



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