Car rear visibility database

01.Car rear visibility

Currently, one child a month across Australia dies in a home driveway runover. In response to this issue, NRMA Insurance has developed a Reversing Visibility Index that measures the "blind spot area" behind a car where the driver can't see a small child.

The NRMA assessment uses:

• A laser pointing device.
• A dummy to represent an adult driver of average size. So results may vary for shorter and taller drivers, or if you can adjust the seat height in your car.
• A test cyclinder to represent the shoulder height of an average two-year old child.
• A grid measuring 1.8 x 15 metres to the rear of the vehicle.

The laser is directed through the rear window of the vehicle. The position where the laser is visible on the test cyclinder is noted. This procedure is repeated for all positions on the grid. The results are analysed and an overall star rating (up to five stars) is given, based on:

• The minimum distance where the cylinder is visible.
• The total blind spot area.
• The effectiveness of a reversing aid (such as a sensor or camera), if the car is fitted with one. In general, reversing sensors improve a car’s rating by half a star. A camera is likely to result in a very high star rating.

The more stars the better. If a car has a low star rating, its driver looking out the rear window is less likely to see an object of child height, compared to a car with a better star rating.

Main findings

• A high rear window line, rear head restraints and high-mounted spare tyre on some 4WDs can severely reduce the visibility out of the back of the car.
• However, contrary to popular belief, 4WDs don’t all offer worse rear visibility than other cars. There are good and bad examples in each category.
• Tinted windows reduce visibility, especially at night, and for older drivers.
• A reversing camera can almost completely eliminate reversing blind spots.  
• You can also fit a reversing aid to your existing vehicle.

We reviewed three types of reversing aids on the market in 2007. Bear in mind that video screen types are more expensive and you'll also need to factor in an installation cost.