The safest cars on the market 2025

Industry safety body Euro NCAP estimated in 2017 that its crash tests have saved over 78,000 lives since their introduction 20 years prior - and that figure will be a lot higher today. 

Today's cars are not just far safer in a crash than they were back in the nineties; they're also safer for pedestrians, cyclists and other road users. What's more, a raft of new driver assist safety features help ensure the driver can avoid crashing in the first place. 

Motorists - particularly those carrying families - care a great deal about how safe their car is. 82% of drivers consider the official safety rating important when looking to buy a new car, according to a 2023 survey by vehicle safety charity BRAKE.

To give you an idea of the safest cars on the market right now, we’ve put together a list of the best models that were awarded the maximum five star rating in their class in recent Euro NCAP safety tests.

• What is Euro NCAP rating?
• All Euro NCAP 5 star cars
• Will having a safer car make my insurance cheaper?
• Safest small family car
• Safest large family car
• Safest small SUV
• Safest large SUV
• Safest supermini


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What is a Euro NCAP rating?

Established in 1997, Euro NCAP is an EU and UK-wide vehicle safety rating system created to help car buyers easily compare the safety aspects of various models.

Euro NCAP safety ratings assess vehicles in four key areas – adult protection, child protection, pedestrian (or vulnerable road user) protection and safety assist – through a series of high-tech crash simulations using crash test dummies covered in sensors.

To reflect constant innovations in vehicle safety, Euro NCAP constantly updates its testing criteria – so a car which scored five stars back in 2020 may not achieve the same rating in 2025, for example. 

Each year Euro NCAP assesses several vehicle classes. In 2024, four classes in particular were assessed most: small SUVs, electric cars, large SUVs and large family cars. Other notable awards include the overall 'Best Performer' - deemed the safest car of that year.

All Euro NCAP 5 star cars tested in 2024

Will having a safer car make my insurance cheaper?

That largely depends on you. Generally speaking, insurance companies are more bothered by your personal driving record than how your vehicle has performed in safety tests like the Euro NCAP.

So while safer cars will generally mean cheaper premiums, if you have a history of being an unsafe driver this will likely override any reductions you would benefit from by having a safer vehicle.

However, cheaper insurance premiums shouldn’t be the only reason to invest in a car with a strong safety record and there are other ways to lower your premium, such as black box insurance that records your driving style.

• How to reduce new-driver car insurance costs

Safest small SUV and safest electric car

Zeekr X

You may well have never heard of Zeekr, unless you're familiar with the raft of new Chinese car brands on the market.

Zeekr is part of the Geely brand umbrella - the company that also owns Volvo, Lotus, Polestar and even the London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC). And its Zeekr X has proven a hit in the brand's home market and beyond.

For a relatively new brand Zeekr has put in a strong showing with Euro NCAP, as the X takes the title of not only the safest small SUV tested in 2024, but also the safest electric car.

It put in an excellent all-round showing, with scoring 92% for adult protection, 90% for child protection, 84% for pedestrian protection and 87% for safest assists. It was closely followed by other five-star cars such as the Cupra Tavascan, MG HS and Toyota C-HR.

The Zeekr X shares its platform and tech with other five-star cars such as the Smart #1 and Volvo EX30. But what relevance does that have to the UK? Well, Zeekr plans to launch in Britain in 2025 - following in the footsteps of Chinese brands such as BYD, Great Wall Motors and Omoda. 

Safest large family car (2024)

Volkswagen Passat/Skoda Superb

In an unusual move, Euro NCAP has awarded the safest large family car of 2024 tag to two cars: the newest generations of the venerable Volkswagen Passat and Skoda Superb. 

With both cars using the same platform and having broadly similar dimensions and weights, both were given the same class-leading scores in crash tests. 

That includes an impressive 93% for adult occupant protection, 87% for child protection, 82% for pedestrian protection and 90% for safety assists. 

With the Passat on its ninth generation, having been on sale since 1973, and the rather newer Skoda Superb on its fourth generation, the result shows that manufacturers are still putting in the engineering effort into what is a dwindling sector, with buyers moving to SUVs in their droves. 

Safest large SUV (2024)

Mazda CX-80

Mazda can hold its head up high with recent crash test results: the best-in-class Mazda CX-80 follows on from five-star ratings of the CX-60, CX-5 and MX-30 electric car.

Closely beating out the Audi Q6 e-tron, the CX-80 scored 92% for adult occupant protection, 88% for child protection, 84% for pedestrian protection and 79% for safety assist tech. 

It's a strong all-round result for Mazda, which bucked the trend for electrification by launching the CX-80 with a now rare straight-six diesel engine. A plug-in hybrid model is also available, however. 

Best Performer/Safest executive car (2024)

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

The start of the show for 2024's round of tests was the latest Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which not only took the category win for the Best Executive Car but the overall Best Performer of the year. 

Having been put through Euro NCAP's rigorous crash test procedure it scores 92% for adult occupant protection, 90% for child occupant protection, 84% for pedestrian protection and 87% for safety assists. That's the best overall score of the year from a weighted average. 

The E-Class is might not be the brand's biggest or most luxurious model but it certainly is one the German brand's longest-lived model. It has a lineage going back to 1947, and is in its tenth generation.

Safest small family car (2022)

GWM Ora 03 (formerly Funky Cat)

No small family cars were given ratings deemed good enough for Euro NCAP to name them 'best-in-class' in 2024 or 2023, so we need to go back a couple of years to find the safest car in this category. 

 The Ora 03 is another example of Chinese brands massively upping their game regarding crash safety in the last couple of decades.

Built by Great Wall Motors (GWM) - and previously known as the Ora Funky Cat before GWM decided on a more palatable name - the Ora 03 is one of the most affordable electric cars on sale. 

That hasn't stopped it achieving impressive scores of 92% for adult occupant protection, 83% for child protection, 74% for pedestrian protection and a remarkable 93% for safety assists. 

Safest city car/supermini (2019)

Renault Clio

You have to go way back to 2019 to find the last time Euro NCAP named a best-in-class supermini or city car. And it's probably no surprise that it's a Renault.

Bar an embarassing zero star rating for the Zoe electric car back in 2021, Renault has a decades-long reputation for safety that began with the Laguna - the first five-star Euro NCAP car ever when tested back in 2001.

The Clio is a considerably safer car now than the Laguna was then, though. Although the testing procedure has been toughened up since, the Clio's deeply impressive 96% adult occupant protection score, 89% child occupant protection 

Safest car FAQs

What is the safest car in the UK?

Judged by the latest Euro NCAP test standard, the safest car you can buy in the UK is the latest Mercedes-Benz E-Class. With impressive all-round category scores in crash tests, it was awarded 'Best Performer' in the 2024 round of tests.

What is the safest SUV in the UK?

 According to Euro NCAP, the safest SUV on sale right now is the Tesla Model Y. With an impressive 97% adult protection score, 87% child protection score and 98% safety assist rating, nothing tested since has beaten it. 

Is Euro NCAP mandatory?

No, Euro NCAP testing is not a requirement for selling a car. Vehicles are either independently chosen by Euro NCAP or spoonsored by the manufacturers themselves. However, there are a number of mandatory safety features for cars sold in the UK and EU including automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assistance, airbags and tyre pressure monitoring.