NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Transport: Check your rating and travel safe

Other
4 May, 2012 01:14 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Photo / Getty

Photo / Getty

The smart safety features in some newer vehicles means that the belief in 'bigger is better' in terms of vehicle safety may no longer hold true.

It may come as a shock to some, but your chances of suffering serious injury or being killed in a crash are affected, in large part, by your choice of vehicle. And bigger doesn't necessarily mean better.

"Newer standard cars, station wagons, or modern SUVs are designed for occupant protection," says Lisa Rossiter, the NZ Transport Agency's chief advisor safety directions.

"There is smart design in the way they crumple in a crash. If road safety was just a matter of weight or size, we would all be driving tanks."

To counter some of the myths, the NZTA created a website, rightcar.govt.nz to provide safety and fuel economy information on new and used vehicles.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It was relaunched late last year with a new look, an improved search system and a wider range of safety information. It includes the results of the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), which is a scheme where vehicles are independently crash tested to show how safe occupants would be if they were in a serious front or side crash.

It also includes Used Car Safety Ratings, which are 'real world' ratings produced using statistical analysis of New Zealand and Australian crash data.

"We're trying to encourage the public to buy the safest car they can afford and so understand what is and isn't safe for their needs," Rossiter says. "Making information easily and freely available is one of the key goals of Rightcar."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

As a rule, new cars are safer, because of the advances in technology and inbuilt safety features. However, safety features like airbags on their own do not guarantee that a vehicle will protect its occupants - that depends on how well the car has been designed as a whole, and the only way to sort the good from the bad is to physically crash test the vehicle.

However, the NZ fleet is aging as people hold on to cars longer through the recession, and the average age of vehicles on the road is now 13 years. There is obviously a big difference between the level of safety offered by a 13 year old vehicle and a new one, but there are good and bad choices at every age and price point.

"We don't want people thinking they need to shell out a lot for a safe vehicle. The site is to help Kiwi mums and dads get the safest car at their price point."

While cars are getting safer, the human body is still the weakest link.

Discover more

New Zealand

Transport: The Bold and the Beautiful BMW

30 Jul 01:06 AM
New Zealand

Transport: Cycle track for Auckland Harbour Bridge

21 May 01:12 AM
New Zealand

Transport: Is Auckland failing its cyclists?

02 Apr 01:16 AM
New Zealand

Transport: Buying the right car

06 Mar 12:18 AM

"Quite simply, humans are very vulnerable to force; we're not as strong as we like to think. Even with good protection such as side airbags and electronic stability control in a vehicle, we're still really fragile in a crash."

All the technology in the world can't stop people hurting themselves if they were driving too fast for the conditions.

Last year there were 284 people killed and approximately 2058 were seriously injured in road crashes.

Even driving just a little over the speed limit significantly increases the impact on bodies in a crash, resulting in a much greater chance of serious injury or death. Reducing your speed is one of the key things you can do to keep safe on the roads.

Driving the safest car you can afford is another.? Visit rightcar.govt.nz for more information.

"We don't want people thinking they need to shell out a lot for a safe vehicle. The site is to help Kiwi mums and dads get the safest car at their price point."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Rate your own car:

Punch your car registration into the website search browser, and instantly get the information regarding its safety, efficiency, pollutants and CO2.

Safety ratings have a top score of five stars, while efficiency, pollution and CO2 have a top rating of six stars

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

Two dead after crashes in Palmerston North and Dunedin

New Zealand

NZ's $32m satellite mission unresponsive, Space Minister silent

Herald NOW

Lorna Riley talks micro cruising, European airports and Fiji reefs with Ryan

Watch

Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Two dead after crashes in Palmerston North and Dunedin
New Zealand

Two dead after crashes in Palmerston North and Dunedin

Police were called to the Palmerston North crash at 7.30pm last night.

14 Jul 09:44 PM
NZ's $32m satellite mission unresponsive, Space Minister silent
New Zealand

NZ's $32m satellite mission unresponsive, Space Minister silent

14 Jul 09:14 PM
Lorna Riley talks micro cruising, European airports and Fiji reefs with Ryan
Herald NOW

Lorna Riley talks micro cruising, European airports and Fiji reefs with Ryan

Watch
14 Jul 08:52 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP