Cameras Putting Safety In The Picture

Newcastle Herald

Saturday October 21, 2006

GR

EVERY week in Australia, a child is run

over in the driveway of their home, yet less

than 1 per cent of the vehicles tested this

year as part of NRMA Insurance's Reversing

Visibility Index received the maximum

five-star rating.

The index, which measures how well a

driver can see out the back of a car,

revealed that a number of vehicle types,

especially family sedans, have hazardous

reversing blind areas.

NRMA Insurance head of research

Robert McDonald said 270 vehicles were

tested as part of the unique program and

although the performance of family sedans

was disappointing, the news wasn't all bad.

'Car manufacturers Lexus, Mitsubishi,

Toyota, BMW, Ford, Mercedes, Porsche,

Volvo and Jeep have all installed reversing

cameras in anumberof their vehicles in an

effort to prevent reversing incidents

involving children,' Mr McDonald said.

'Reversing cameras can greatly improve

the driver?s visibility and we urge car

manufacturers to consider the installation

of this technology.'

The Lexus GS430 and the Ford Territory,

the only tested vehicles to be awarded the

maximum five-star rating, feature

enhanced reversing visibility cameras

where the rim of the bumper can easily be

seen, providing more perspective for the

driver.

'Increasingly, cameras are available in

luxury vehicles and four-wheel-drives as a

standard fitment, but manufacturers of

family sedans are lagging behind,' Mr

McDonald said. 'Manufacturers using GPS

systems in their vehicles should be including

reversing technologies as a matter of

course.

'The costs involved in installing a

camera to a GPS system are minimal.'

Mr McDonald reminded motorists they

didn't have to buy a new car to get access

to reversing-camera technology, as retail

products are available and can be easily

retro-fitted to older vehicles.

'Retro-fitting reversing cameras can

result in improved visibility for many cars

on our road today. A properly installed

camera could, in fact, give the driver the

same visibility as a five-star car,' Mr

McDonald added.

CEO of NRMA Insurance, David Issa,

explained that although car manufacturers

and the development of new technology

played an important role in addressing the

issue, improved driver behaviour and

increased responsibility by parents and

carers of children were important factors

in reducing death and injury.

'As the leading compulsory third party

motor insurer in NSW, we help a number

of children recover from injuries resulting

from motor vehicle accidents,' Mr Issa

said.

'Our experience tells us that even with

the best reversing aids there is no substitute

for adult supervision of children

around cars.

'Small children are naturally inquisitive

and can move surprisingly quickly.

'Motorists also need to slowdownand be

very aware of what is going on around

them, driving no faster than 5kmh when in

reverse.'

The facts:

* Every week one child is run over in the

driveway of their home (information

sourced from www.kidsafe.com.au).

* More than a third of pedestrians aged

under six who are killed in motor vehicle

crashes were struck down 'off road' in

yards, car parks and driveways (Williamson,

Ann et al [2002] - Analysis of motor

vehicle-related fatalities involving children

under the age of six years [1995-2000]).

Retro-fitted cameras:

Not all reversing camera technology is

the same, so NRMA Insurance makes the

following recommendations when considering

a reversing camera system for

your vehicle:

Reversing cameras should:

*Have a large field of view and be

mounted so that the rear bumper bar is in

view.

* Be able to operate in low-light situations.

Reversing camera displays should:

* Be large enough to clearly view

obstacles and be visible in both low-light

and bright conditions.

* Be mounted so they are easily viewable

when reversing but don't impede

normal driving vision.

NRMA Insurance Reversing Visibility

Index:

The world's first Reversing Visibility

Index was compiled by NRMA Insurance

in October 2002 and featured 80 vehicles.

The latest data features 270 vehicles

including 4WDs, people-movers, utilities

and sport vehicles, luxury, large, medium,

medium-small and small sedans.

The index has been developed to

encourage motorists to compare the safety

design features of vehicles.

This consumer tool takes into account

the visible area and distance across the

rear of the vehicle and whether cameras

and sensors have been installed. Results

are rated on a scale of zero to five stars,

with a rating of five indicating better

reversing visibility than all other vehicles.

The full results of NRMA Insurance's

Reversing Visibility Index can be viewed

at www.nrma.com.au/reversing.

© 2006 Newcastle Herald

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