Euro NCAP has presented the first of its new Euro NCAP Advanced rewards, which recognise latest vehicle safety technology.

Advanced is an initiative in response to the rapid development of new technologies available when buying cars for which there is no independent assessment.

By rewarding advanced technologies, Euro NCAP said it is now providing an incentive to car manufacturers to accelerate the standard fitment of important safety equipment across their model ranges, as well as offering more comprehensive guidance to consumers about the safety of new cars.

The organisation has rewarded the first set of manufacturers for their efforts in their development of new safety features.

The 2010 rewarded advanced technologies are:

• Audi Side Assist
• BMW Assist Advanced eCall
• Honda Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS)
• Mercedes-Benz PRE-SAFE® and PRE-SAFE® Brake
• Opel Eye
• Peugeot Connect SOS and
• Citroën Localized Emergency Call
• Volkswagen Lane Assist
• Volvo City Safety

Euro NCAP Advanced is open to any technical system that has a proven safety benefit, whether it is primary, secondary or tertiary, as long as it is available as an option on one of the Euro NCAP tested cars and not already addressed by the current star rating.

The overall rating consists of an independent verification of a car by Euro NCAP based on crash tests and published protocols.

The Euro NCAP Advanced assessment is based entirely on manufacturers’ data generated in their own defined test conditions and rigorously analysed by a team of experts appointed by Euro NCAP.

In addition, Euro NCAP Advanced requires manufacturers to identify exactly what the safety impact of their technology may be in European countries, taking into consideration the different infrastructure, jurisdictions and at times driver behaviour.

Euro NCAP's Dr van Ratingen said: "Carmakers were involved in the development of the process and were very keen to get their systems into the assessment.

"We ended up having almost too many dossiers to cope with and we have more coming up in the next months, which is a clear sign that the industry is actively driving safety improvements, even when green cars are top on the agenda."

Most systems rewarded at the recent Paris Motor Show were developed a few years ago and have been in the marketplace for at least a year or two.

In the future, Euro NCAP Advanced will be able to use the methodology to assess completely new technologies, tackling areas of safety which have not yet been addressed.