Irish people put spec over safety when buying cars, reports DanielAttwood
Selling safety is tough. Despite the alarming rise in road deaths this year, Ireland's car importers claim that buyers now expect alloys, air-conditioning and CD players as standard but are less impressed when it comes to more technical safety gadgets, such as electronic stability control (ESP).
For many motorists, the alphabet soup of high-tech safety under the bonnet just doesn't have the wow factor. Once they see seatbelts and a few airbag stickers, attention focuses on trim and cupholders. And, when it comes to resale, the ads put quality sound systems and sunroofs ahead of airbags.
The importers say that, to get safer cars on the road, the government must offer tax incentives for cars with additional safety equipment. They say that high motor taxation, in particular VRT, often forces them to drop important safety equipment to keep cars competitively priced.
The Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, is less than convinced that responsibility for better safety equipment in cars should fall to the Government. Confirming his department is examining the practice of removing safety features to bring prices down, Mr Brennan says he is "strongly of the opinion that car manufacturers who want to reduce prices should bring about that saving through changes to non-safety and non-essential features of the car".
He has also called on motorists to change their attitude. "Considering the level of spending on new cars in recent years, there is a clear responsibility on individuals to ensure the vehicle they buy is the safest possible."
The Minister has a point: Renault, which prides itself on selling safe cars, began offering a version of its Clio with four airbags removed. It costs €1,000 less than the safer six-airbag version.
"It sold like hot cakes," says Bill Cullen, chairman Renault Ireland. "People are reluctant to pay for something they can't see. Motorists go for visuals like spoilers and alloy wheels. If we tell somebody this car comes with EBD (electronic brake force distribution), they are reluctant to pay extra for it. Many don't even know what it is."
Cullen claims that when Renault began promoting the safety of its cars, the Irish importer was faced with a difficult decision: reduce safety equipment or cover the extra cost. "Our competitors are reluctant to pay for safety features because they know customers are reluctant to pay for them. But we have taken that decision and it will pay off in the long-term."
Competitors such as VW and Audi went the opposite way and decided to cut an electronic safety feature for base models.
Ireland's National Safety Council (NSC) says that the EU may have the answer. European legislation, it hopes, will eventually demand that all latest safety features be included as standard.
Some legislation to this effect has already been introduced: from January all new cars sold in the EU have had a driver's airbag as standard and, by 2005, all new cars will be fitted with ABS. But there's a long way to go before features such as multiple airbags and ESP become compulsory.
In the meantime it's down to customers to insist on the highest safety features, says Brian Farrell from the NSC. "We'd like to see consumers become more safety conscious in their vehicle choice," he says.