The time has gone when people would consider the mileage of a car before buying it. A new study & survey was conducted by NIQ BASES which was commissioned by Skoda Auto India. This study found that 9 out of 10 potential customers in India consider safety ratings when looking for a new car. Skoda offers Slavia, Kodiaq, and Kushaq in India and Slavia and Kushaq have a 5-star safety rating as per GNCAP.
This new study covered 1000 people from 10 different states of India. The crash test ratings are what drive people towards a new car for purchase. The number of airbags was the second feature after safety ratings. The fuel efficiency was the third matter of interest when looking into a new car.
This survey demographic consisted of the 18 to 54 age group, 80% of which were male and 20% were female. 67% were people who currently own a car above Rs 5 lakh. 33% did not have a car and were looking to buy a new car within the next year. 92% of all the people surveyed were clear on prioritising cars that have been crash tested. 22.2% made it clear that they would only go for a 5-star safety rating, and 21.3% were okay with a 4-star rating as well. 6.8% of people couldn’t care less about the safety ratings at all.
When asked further 47.6% of people stated that safety is more important to them than features when looking for a new car. 30% would prioritise a car with the best child/rear occupant safety and 15% still would go for the best-in-class mileage car.
This is good to see that people are caring more about safety now than features or some other hook that would reel them in. In India, 1.5 lakh lives are lost on roads, which means 1130 accidents with 422 deaths every day. 18 people die every hour because of road accidents in India, so safer cars are the way to go moving forward.
Indian Govt has always promoted safer cars and even pushed manufacturers into making safer cars in recent years. Soon India will have its own safety crash test system called Bharat NCAP.
