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New vehicle safety systems, such as emergency braking technology, are being switched off by drivers, new research suggests.
The range of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) have become increasingly common in new cars and vans.
Autonomous emergency braking (AEB), for example, has become standard in many new fleet cars, but the research from Autoglass shows there is still a lack of knowledge and awareness.
It found that almost a quarter (24%) of drivers with ADAS enabled vehicles said they were not provided with any information about the importance of these features and how they work when they had the vehicle handed over to them.
The survey of almost 1,400 drivers also found that 41% intentionally switch off safety systems such as AEB or lane departure warning systems, while driving.
Neil Atherton, sales and marketing director at Autoglass, said that ADAS can help keep drivers and passengers safe, but only if the technology is “switched on and operating correctly”.
“ADAS is becoming more and more common in UK fleets and so more should be done to educate drivers, to encourage positive behaviour and ensure the systems are being used correctly,” he said
“Fleet managers have a responsibility to not only help drivers understand the benefits of these systems but also to review their supply chain to ensure the vehicles are being maintained to the correct standards.”
The cameras and sensors that ADAS relies on need to be recalibrated to manufacturer standards if they have been impacted by a windscreen replacement, and in some cases body damage, to ensure the features are working correctly.
However, more than half (55%) of respondents were unaware that they need to be recalibrated when the windscreen is replaced and 52% of drivers were unaware that the cameras may need to be recalibrated if they have been impacted by body repair work.
When asked, two thirds (67%) of drivers agreed that more education is needed around the importance of ensuring this technology is properly maintained.
“It is paramount that fleet managers have a trusted partner who can carry out the recalibrations to industry standards,” said Atherton.
The increasing number of ADAS enabled vehicles in UK fleets has inevitably led to an increase in demand for recalibration.
In response to this, Autoglass has opened 12 new centres this year, taking the total number of centres in the UK to 90, to allow recalibration to be done in-house.
The new centres have been opened across the UK including Reading, Derby, Carlisle and Banbury.
The locations have been chosen to provide fleets with a more convenient service, and all centres offer windscreen repair and replacements, ADAS recalibration and replacement wiper blades, says Autoglass.
Atherton concluded: “Looking ahead to 2021, we are continuing our plans of opening more centres to ensure we are doing all we can to keep fleet drivers safe on the roads.”
The only person who got all his work done by Friday was Robinson Crusoe.
Anything i post over three lines long please assume it is an article lol.
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to be honest i would turn off the auto braking on my car as at times its very sensitive and its rather alarming when it happens. the first time it did it it nearly caused an accident as i didnt realise what was happening.
also i am rather dubious about all this automation of safety features not convinced they are as good as theyre cracked up to be.
its like all the fasination with touchy feely screens etc i cant use them so its going to restrict the car i can get in the future even my phone i struggle using the screen, i have to have a blackberry with a proper keyboard i am that bad.
not all tech is good.
Having the auto braking cut in because the car’s electronics get confused is a nightmare, as is the lane departure warning that pulls at the steering wheel. Turn them off.
Put that together with auto headlights that get confused with light drizzle & fog, auto windscreen wipers that use too slow an interval so you can’t see out, etc., & it’s obvious why experienced drivers turn this rubbish off.
I know what you mean julie, I myself have had a couple of near heart attacks with the brakes slamming on, I say “slamming” but in truth its sort of a stab of the brakes but makes my heart skip a beat when it does it.
I never turned the system off thought because over the 4 years I had the VW Golf Mk7 I had two occasion in low speed city traffic where your attention is easily taken away and the car in front unexpectedly stops dead and the cars system hit the brake a couple of micro-seconds before I did saving the day.
It reminds me of the first time I used cruise control and I thought “I’ll never use that again” but I did and now I use it a lot.
We’re just about to get our xc40 which has various bits of safety tech, not in our five years old xc60, and I’m looking forward to setting it up and using it. However it’s there to make driving safer so if it doesn’t do what it says on the tin I will be switching it of but not until I’ve given myself the chance to understand it’s behaviour ?
There just certain parameters that they don’t work well in and knowing them helps alot. Like if the camera/ radar is iced over or glare from the sun or a leaf blows past?. If the road markings are faded, if you try and change lane and don’t indicate etc etc.
I use adaptive cruise alot and it is great the new car has cut-in protection and it slows down if it detects a car may change lanes and slows the car down 95% of the time it’s right as then they pullout. Quite amazing really my golf mk7 never had that. So one had to aim the car at the other car for the radar to pick it up once they started to cut in to the lane.
Only find the lane guidance a pain sometimes on my Vauxhall Combo Life – on narrower roads where you are close/over the white lines then it gets a bit confused – otherwise I leave it on.
Not had any issues with the auto braking kicking in when it shouldn’t.
The auto windscreen wipers is fine as you can adjust the sensitivity and find it better than an intermittent wiper which is always either too much or not enough! LOL
Auto lights all seem ok as well.
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