The safest cars on sale in 2024 - the latest crash test results

The European New Car Assessment Programme or EuroNCAP may have started crash testing cars in 1997, but the international safety organisation is continually enhancing and tweaking the tests new cars need to go through to be assessed as part of its safety rating programme.

The latest testing regime was introduced last year, and now includes a number of tougher tests to see how well cars are able to detect and avoid collisions with motorcyclists and vulnerable road users in more complex situations. These include alerts or interventions when a car is turning right at a junction and when it’s crossing the path of an oncoming vehicle. A wide range of tests of systems which fall under the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) banner, plus night-time tests of active safety systems are now carried out, too.

There is now also a requirement for cars to have a driver monitoring system to warn against drowsiness or inattention, and a warning system to stop the driver from opening their door and hitting a cyclist if one is riding alongside the car.

New models should also have emergency systems that allow people to open the doors and windows after a car has been submerged in water. Extra marks will also be added for vehicles that come as standard with an in-car system that alerts the driver if a child has been left in the car.

To achieve the coveted five-star rating, each new model has to comply with these exacting new targets, as well as provide exemplary physical crash protection.

In total, 39 new vehicles have been tested under Euro NCAP's latest standards, although not all will be on sale in the UK any time soon. Here, we list the top 10 safest cars that are either on sale now, or arriving later in 2024.

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