Road Safety

Motor caravans are among the safest means of road transport. Compared to other motor vehicles, the accident risks and consequences are significantly lower.

Excellent road safety of caravans and motor caravans

Since 1997, the accident figures for caravans and motor caravans are evaluated annually by the Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt). As in previous years, these figures are hardly detectable. This is impressive evidence that leisure vehicles and their drivers are among the safest road users.

Out of 457,354 motor caravan accidents causing injuries in 2017, 884 were motor caravans and 197 vehicle-car-combinations.

Looking at the consequences of these accidents shows that even in comparison to passenger cars, the road safety of leisure vehicles is still clearly higher. Out of 2,298 drivers and passengers who died in vehicles in 2017, five were motor caravan passengers. Two people died in vehicle-caravan combinations. In relation to a total number of 100,000 vehicles in use, this means that accidents resulted in the deaths of 3.1 persons in passenger cars, 1 person in motor caravans and 0.3 persons in vehicle-caravan combinations. The same applies to seriously and slightly injured passengers. While 470 vehicle passengers per 100,000 registered cars are involved in accidents, only 87 are involved in motor caravans and 22 in vehicle-caravan combinations.

Motor caravans can be classified as extremely safe both in terms of the absolute number of accidents and in terms of the accident risks related to driving performance. A comparison shows 256 accidents that caused personal injuries per billion vehicle kilometres for motor caravans, versus 519 personal injuries per billion vehicle kilometres in the case of passenger cars.

Data on road safety of motor caravans and caravan combinations (2016)

wdt_ID Vehicle type Accidents with personal injury Killed drivers/passengers Seriously & lightly injured drivers/passengers
1 Automobile 839 3,4 493
2 Motor caravans 202 1,7 100
3 Caravan combinations 33 0,3 20
Note on statistics: Per 100,000 vehicles or combinations

Source: CIVD surveys, Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt)

 

Data on road safety of motor caravans and caravan combinations (2017)

wdt_ID Vehicle type Accidents with personal injury Killed drivers/passengers Seriously & lightly injured drivers/passengers
1 Automobile 801 3,1 469
2 Motor caravans 182 1,0 86
3 Caravan combinations 30 0,3 22
Note on statistics: Per 100,000 vehicles or combinations

Source: CIVD surveys, Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt)

 

EU Driving License The standard driving licence class B is sufficient for driving most vehicle-caravan combinations and motor caravans throughout Europe. Special regulations apply to heavy vehicles. Find out more
Motor Vehicle Tax for Motor Caravans The taxation of motor caravans depends on the weight and emission class of the motor caravan. Find out more
CIVD Directive Material Compliance The industry-wide guidelines for material compliance ensure a high standard in the areas of technical requirements, comfort and environmental friendliness. Find out more