It should actually be the other way around. But now a study shows that cars with assistance systems drive more often than cars without.
It turns out that cars equipped with assistance systems are more often involved in accidents compared to cars without.
A new study from a Dutch insurance company sheds light on the surprising trend in claims statistics.
Marko Nanne from the insurance company Univé points out that this is mainly due to the drivers themselves, as they have a habit of relying too much on the systems.
– Many people who drive these kinds of cars overestimate the system's capabilities, he says.
The study, which analyzes extensive data on car accidents in the Netherlands, has distinguished between cars with and without driver assistance systems, and the results have surprised experts.
Car accidents are often the fault of the drivers.
– In cars with driver assistance systems, the number of injuries was 25 percent higher last year, and this year we expect an increase of 44 percent, says Marko Nanne to Auto Week .
Cars that have driver assistance systems are often newer and more expensive, which only makes them more expensive to repair when something goes wrong.
However, some assistance systems have become mandatory by law in the last few years. Systems that drivers are not allowed to turn off. At least not permanently. Read more about it here.
Analysts believe that owners of these cars get a false sense of security in their cars. In other words, drivers feel overly confident that nothing will go wrong. The computer takes care of that, after all. But that kind of blind trust in a computer-based system itself increases the risk of accidents.
Marko Nanne explains that the assistance systems only work to a limited extent. As a driver, you can't afford to climb behind the wheel and turn off your brain.
– Driver assistance systems have great potential to prevent traffic accidents and injuries. But they are too limited to be used without interaction from the driver.
– We must realize that this technology is an addition to our driving skills, not a replacement for them.
Nanne urges car owners to exercise caution and avoid leaving the intersection entirely to the car's computer, as fully self-driving cars are still a future scenario.
Instead, drivers should primarily rely on their own judgment, with driver assistance systems merely acting as supplementary help.
"If we succeed, we will really be able to use the benefits of driver assistance systems," says Marko Nanne.
Since 2022, the EU has introduced requirements that new cars must be equipped with driver assistance systems such as emergency braking assistance, lane departure warning, parking sensors and rearview cameras.
In 2024, additional rules were added so that all new cars must be equipped as standard with a so-called intelligent cruise control and Event Data Recorder, which logs all information about the car in the event of an accident.
