Less than 1% of accidents caused by technical defects confirms new study
Most fatal accidents (over 99%) are due to human behaviour and external factors, while less than 1% are caused by technical defects, with tyre issues being the most frequent technical defect.
A recent study by the German research institute FKA confirms that less than 1% of fatal accidents are caused by technical defects while questioning the need for additional Periodic Technical Inspection (PTI) amendments.
The new findings come as the European Commission is mulling an amendment to the Roadworthiness Package that would add burdensome PTI requirements on vehicle manufacturers at a crucial moment when the industry faces unprecedented challenges.
The study underlines that future regulatory changes should be made with caution. Amending the PTI scheme without proper consideration could increase testing costs without improving safety. Any new vehicle testing requirements should be handled under type approval legislation, not PTI regulations
Furthermore, vehicle manufacturers also already provide extensive data for PTI requirements under EU legislation (Regulation 2019/621/EU). However, the data is not widely utilised by PTI bodies, which hinders effective testing of modern electronic systems.
Instead of expanding unnecessary PTI testing, to effectively reduce fatalities the study recommends better data collection on the causes of accidents while ensuring that vehicle design and testing requirements are handled within existing type approval regulations. The harmonisation of PTI practices across the EU would also facilitate compliance and data sharing.
You can consult the full study here: https://www.fka.de/en/coming-up/publications/823-study-on-the-roadworthiness-package.html
Most fatal accidents (over 99%) are due to human behaviour and external factors, while less than 1% are caused by technical defects, with tyre issues being the most frequent technical defect.
