From the start of 2018 ANCAP’s testing and assessment protocols are substantially common with those of Euro NCAP. One key area of difference is assessment and rating of Child Occupant Protection (COP). While alignment of protocols is maintained where possible, differences in products and in vehicle installations require a unique assessment.

The differences arise from a mandatory product standard regulating Child Restraint Systems (CRS) in the Australasian market (AS/NZS 1754). The requirements of the standard mean that all booster seats sold in Australia are high back boosters, while prohibiting of the use of ISOFIX attachments for booster seats. Australian law also mandates use of booster seats by age (up to 7 years).

The 2018 protocols see the first opportunity for assessment of the performance of Australasian booster seats in full scale frontal and side impact crash testing. Typical vehicle accelerations recorded in ANCAP frontal offset tests are above those specified by existing regulatory or consumer CRS testing, and some parties expressed concerns regarding performance of Australasian CRS in comparison with European specification restraints, in particular those CRS recommended by vehicle manufacturers and used in Euro NCAP dynamic COP testing.

The paper provides an overview of early results, considerations for vehicle manufacturers and areas for future consideration in relation to child booster seats in the context of consumer ratings.