Brexit has left many areas of legal regulation in limbo, including mandatory safety technology in new vehicles.

The UK Government has opened a major consultation on making a wide range of in-car safety technologies mandatory on new vehicles sold in Great Britain.

This signals its intention to align more closely with European Union rules already in force.

Ministers say the move could prevent tens of thousands of casualties and more than 700,000 collisions over the next 15 years.

Still, industry voices warn success will depend on drivers actually understanding and using the systems fitted to their cars.

Helping the driver

The consultation forms part of the Government’s new road safety strategy.

It proposes adopting 18 of the 19 technologies included in the EU’s ‘New Vehicle General Safety Regulation (GSR2)’, which became mandatory for new vehicles sold in the EU and Northern Ireland from July 2024.

Although the UK helped to develop the regulation before leaving the EU, Great Britain did not automatically adopt the mandate, leaving the decision to ministers.

GB type approval, the scheme that governs whether manufacturers can market or register vehicles and components in Great Britain, is currently based largely on EU legislation carried over into UK law at Brexit.

The government proposal would require the safety technologies to be fitted to mass-produced vehicles in categories including cars, vans, buses, coaches and trucks.

Alcohol interlocks are the only element of GSR2 excluded at this stage, with ministers saying further work is needed before deciding whether to proceed.

 

Positive drive

The Department for Transport has commissioned research assessing the costs and benefits of the technologies, effectively repeating the assessments already undertaken by the EU.

Its findings suggest wide-ranging safety gains, particularly for passengers, pedestrians and cyclists.

This analysis estimates that, over a 15-year period, mandatory fitment could prevent more than 758,000 collisions and around 65,000 casualties, while also easing congestion caused by crashes.

The list of potential technologies spans both upgrades to existing systems and entirely new functions.

Included is intelligent speed assistance, driver drowsiness and distraction monitoring, blind-spot detection for larger vehicles, reversing motion awareness, direct vision standards for trucks and buses, and a suite of automatic emergency braking systems designed to protect against collisions with vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.

New crash-test standards, such as full-width and pole-side impacts, are aimed at improving protection across age, size, and gender.

Consultation points

Advanced distraction warning (ADW)

Driver assistance technology that alerts the driver when a visual distraction is detected, either due to fatigue or due to some activity that competes for a driver’s visual attention, including inappropriate use of smartphone devices. Upon detection of driver inattention, the driver receives a warning to resume normal, attentive driving, which could reduce the risk of frontal collision.

Blind spot information system (BSIS)

A primary safety technology that informs the driver when a cyclist is close to the nearside of the vehicle and warns the driver when a turning collision on the nearside becomes more likely.

Drowsiness and attention warning (DAW)

A driver assistance technology that warns the driver when driver drowsiness is detected. It detects driver inattention by analysing system data over a given period of erratic driving and steering input, whether due to fatigue or to some activity that competes for a driver’s visual attention. Upon detection of driver inattention, the driver receives a warning to resume normal attentive driving or take a rest, thereby reducing the risk of a collision.

Direct vision (DIV)

A vehicle design requirement which ensures that a minimum volume in proximity to the vehicle’s front, nearside and offside can be observed by the driver in direct vision (i.e. without the aid of mirrors or cameras) to allow detection of pedestrians and cyclists. It is designed to expand the field of vision for drivers in bus and truck cabs. This improves safety by providing direct visual confirmation of a vulnerable road user’s presence, enabling the driver to take appropriate countermeasures to avoid a collision.

Emergency braking for cyclists (EBC)

Primary safety technology that warns the driver and automatically brakes when a frontal collision with a cyclist crossing the road is imminent. It combines sensing the environment ahead of the vehicle with automatic brake activation (without driver input) to reduce impact speed or stop the vehicle before the collision, significantly reducing injury risk.

Emergency braking for pedestrians (EBP)

Primary safety technology that warns the driver and automatically brakes when a frontal collision with a pedestrian is imminent. It combines sensing the environment ahead of the vehicle with automatic brake activation (without driver input) to reduce impact speed or stop the vehicle before the collision, significantly reducing injury risk.

Emergency braking for vehicles (EBV)

Primary safety technology that warns the driver and automatically brakes when a frontal collision with a preceding car is imminent. It combines sensing the environment ahead of the vehicle with automatic brake activation (without driver input) to reduce impact speed or stop the vehicle before the collision, significantly reducing injury risk. Advanced emergency braking is currently only mandatory for heavy-duty vehicles. Extending the technology to cars and vans could be a cost-effective way to improve road safety.

Event data recorder (EDR)

Technology that records critical, crash-related parameters before and during a collision to support crash reconstruction and research. This device would provide relevant data for in-depth collision analysis, helping to make the effectiveness of most other vehicle safety systems measurable.

Emergency lane keeping system (ELKS)

Primary safety technology that warns the driver of unintended lane departures and corrects the vehicle’s course to avoid crossing solid lane markings. The system recognises that the vehicle is about to leave or no longer follows the appropriate lane. It only actively intervenes to keep within the lane where there is an imminent risk of leaving the lane. This vehicle safety measure, therefore, reduces the risk of collisions. The driver can maintain control and override the system at any time by taking a deliberate action, such as steering or other control input.

Emergency stop signal (ESS)

Primary safety technology that is designed to address front-to-rear collisions. A light-signalling function which, if the vehicle is travelling at above 50 km/h (31 mph), indicates high braking deceleration to other road users to the rear of the vehicle by a rapid flashing of all the stop lamps or all the direction indicators. Drivers following a hard-braking vehicle are made aware that the vehicle in front is braking with high deceleration, enabling them to take appropriate action. It helps drivers recognise hard-braking situations earlier, helping to prevent collisions or reduce the resulting impact speed.

Frontal full-width impact (FFI)

Crash test to help ensure all vehicle occupants benefit from comparable levels of protection in a frontal impact, irrespective of sex, age or stature, by engaging the entire width of the vehicle and using different-sized crash test dummies and injury criteria appropriate for older occupants.

Frontal off-set impact (FOI)

Crash test to improve the protection of vehicle occupants in a frontal impact where only part of the front of a vehicle strikes another object (like another car or a barrier), rather than the full width.

Intelligent speed assistance (ISA

Driver assistance technology that warns the driver or slows the vehicle down when the speed limit is being exceeded. ISA is designed to support the driver in complying with speed limits and can be implemented as a warning or a speed control system. Speed limit information is provided through a combination of optical recognition of maximum speed signs, as well as up-to-date detailed map data or real-time over-the-air type data.
It will be possible for the driver to deactivate the system for the duration of a journey. A speed control system can always be overridden by the driver (for example, by pressing the accelerator. It will not affect the driver’s ability to exceed the stated speed limit should they choose to do so. It will remain the driver’s responsibility to maintain compliance with statutory speed limits. This measure is expected to reduce the risk of collisions and the resulting impact speed in collisions that cannot be prevented.

Moving off information system (MOIS)

Primary safety technology that informs the driver when a pedestrian or cyclist is in the blind spot area in front of the vehicle and warns the driver when moving off or a low-speed impact with the vehicle front is likely.

Pole side impact (PSI)

Crash test to assess the performance of vehicles in an impact with a rigid narrow object.

Pedestrian windscreen impact (PWI

Head impact test to improve the secondary safety of pedestrians in impacts with the vehicle’s windscreen.

Reversing motion awareness (RMA)

Primary safety technology that aids the driver in visually observing or detecting pedestrians or cyclists behind the vehicle when reversing.

Tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS)

Driver assistance technology that warns the driver of incorrect tyre pressure caused by punctures or gradual pressure loss over time. Underinflated tyres can lead to poor vehicle handling and increased stopping distances, and can result in catastrophic tyre failure and subsequent loss of vehicle control due to increased stress and heat build-up in the tyre. TPM reduces the risk of collisions through its avoidance potential.

Reaction speed

Many of these technologies work by intervening earlier than drivers can react, warning them or automatically braking when a collision is imminent.

Others, such as emergency stop signals or tyre-pressure monitoring, focus on reducing crash severity or preventing dangerous mechanical failures.

Several also have environmental benefits, with tyre pressure monitoring and intelligent speed assistance expected to cut fuel use and emissions.

Safety technology providers have broadly welcomed the consultation.

Florian Doellner, public policy and government relations lead at Samsara, said the strategy marked “a clear move toward leveraging technology to prevent serious collisions and a growing focus on preventing dangerous behaviour before it leads to harm,” highlighting the role of AI-enabled dash cameras and real-time drowsiness detection.

 

 

Driver ignorance

However, experts also warn that mandatory fitment does not guarantee safer roads if technology is switched off, misunderstood or misused.

Research from IAM RoadSmart indicates that only around a quarter of high-mileage business drivers regularly use driver-assistance features already fitted to their vehicles.

The Association of Fleet Professionals has voiced concerns that overreliance can lead to a “lazy” driving style if proper training is not provided.

Peter Golding, chief executive of FleetCheck, said drivers frequently do not understand the systems now common on new vehicles.

Some find alerts irritating, he said, while others wrongly assume semi-automated systems can fully control the car.

“ADAS is something that has just appeared without much attention being paid to ensuring drivers know how to integrate the technology into their everyday driving,” he warned.

Aaron Jarvis, vice president EMEA at Geotab, described the proposals as a “solid step” but said uptake would vary unless drivers trusted the systems. “Technology left unused, misunderstood or overridden delivers limited value,” he said, noting wide differences in how drivers respond to identical systems.

Your thoughts

The Government insists the package will raise the baseline level of safety for all vehicles on UK roads, helping to protect vulnerable road users while reducing crash severity and frequency.

It will also bring the UK in line with the EU, consolidating the international approach to improving road safety.

The consultation on mandating the technologies in GB type approval is now open and will close on 31 March.

Have your say here.