How to make sure your next used car purchase is safe

AA Motoring
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A safe option: the Subaru Legacy. Photo / Bevan Conley

A safe option: the Subaru Legacy. Photo / Bevan Conley

Buying a used car these days doesn’t mean you have to forgo safety. In many instances you don’t need to break the bank to buy a safe set of wheels. But what should you buy?

The recently released 2018-19 Used Car Safety Ratings provide a crash safety rating that shows how well each vehicle protects its driver from serious injury in a crash so you can make an informed decision about your next purchase.

The ratings are created by using records from more than 8 million vehicles involved in police-reported road crashes in New Zealand and Australia. Research by the Monash University Accident Research Centre in Melbourne, which created the ratings, found that a driver of the worst-rated vehicle for safety is more than 10 times likely to be killed or seriously injured in the same crash as a driver in the best-rated vehicle.

Recent data also shows that 40 per cent of those killed were in cars 15 years or older, while only 15 per cent were in cars less than five years old.

When looking at used cars, look for a vehicle with at least a good or excellent (4 or 5 stars) rating for driver protection or a “Safer Pick” vehicle. Safer Pick vehicles have been found to cause less serious injury to drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists in a collision, and have a lower risk of being involved in a crash.

The cars with the highest safety ratings incorporate important technologies to help them avoid a crash like Electronic Stability Control, which dramatically improves a vehicle’s road-holding capability and driver control. This year, the Safer Pick options include reversing cameras for the first time.

The safest vehicle isn’t always the most expensive. We’ve taken a look at some of the 5-star rated vehicles and compiled some prices based on travelling between 100,000-150,000km.

AA Motoring always recommends you buy the safest vehicle you can afford. It is worth putting time into a little research to find the right vehicle.

● For the complete list of the latest Used Car Safety Ratings, go to aa.co.nz/ucsr

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