For the first time, you can give a truck stars. Euro NCAP, the organisation you probably know from passenger car safety tests, has also been assessing heavy trucks since 2024. In the most recent rounds for distribution trucks, several models achieved the maximum five stars. Good news, but the question that matters to you is different: what does such a score really mean when you buy a truck? Below, we list the results of the Mercedes-Benz Actros, Scania P model, Volvo FM, MAN TGM, Renault and DAF XD and explain what those stars really mean.
Euro NCAP is an independent European organisation that assesses vehicle safety. Since 1997, it has been known for its safety tests for passenger cars, and since 2024 Euro NCAP has also been assessing heavy trucks.
The assessment looks at three areas. The first is safe driving: how well can the driver oversee the situation and anticipate it? This includes direct vision from the cab, driver monitoring and driver assistance systems. The second is crash avoidance: the active systems that prevent or reduce the impact of a collision, such as automatic braking and lane support. The third is safety after a crash: information and features that help if something does go wrong. Together, these three areas determine the number of stars.
There is also the CitySafe label. This distinction is intended for trucks that score particularly well in urban traffic, with an emphasis on visibility, driver assistance systems and the protection of vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. Especially in busy cities, where distribution trucks drive all day, these are the situations where these systems make the difference. A truck can therefore receive the CitySafe label, even if its overall score is not five stars.
The Mercedes-Benz Actros achieves an overall score of 88% and receives five stars with CitySafe. The Actros was tested after improvements to its active safety software compared with models assessed earlier. What stands out: unlike many competitors, Mercedes provides part of the more advanced technology as standard, most impressively the protection of a cyclist during a right-turning manoeuvre.
Direct vision is good thanks to the medium-height cab position in the distribution version, and the camera system improves rear visibility. On top of that, there is a range of well-performing systems for safe driving and crash avoidance. The combination of direct and indirect vision, frontal AEB for pedestrians and cyclists, and turn-across-path AEB for cyclists raises safety in the city and earns the CitySafe label. On the motorway too, the Actros supports the driver well with strong AEB and lane support. In short: a safe choice for regional distribution.
The Renault Trucks D achieves four stars plus the CitySafe label in the Euro NCAP test. The tested vehicle was an 18-tonne 4x2 box truck with a 320 hp engine, a typical combination for urban and regional distribution.
The score comes from a combination of good visibility and strong active systems. Direct vision from the cab is wide, strengthened by a vision door with a viewing panel on the passenger side and additional cameras, exactly the side where things often go wrong in the city. On the system side, the truck also performs well: a distance warning system, Adaptive Cruise Control that maintains distance automatically and the Advanced Emergency Braking System that intervenes when a collision threatens. According to Euro NCAP, ACC and AEB were extremely effective against rear-end collisions and the AEB also performed very well with pedestrians and cyclists. A recent update automatically switches the AEB back on after 15 minutes if it has been turned off, so protection remains continuous. In figures: 75% for safe driving, 59% for crash avoidance and 80% for post-crash systems.
The Volvo FM also scores 88% overall, with five stars and CitySafe. Direct vision is very good thanks to the cab design and the medium-height mounting position, further strengthened by an optional camera system that partly replaces the standard mirrors. This gives the driver a wide and complete view of what is happening around the truck.
In terms of safe driving, the FM is well put together, with seatbelt reminders for the driver and passenger, speed assistance and direct driver monitoring that checks the driver’s attention. Together, these deliver a high Safe Driving score. In crash avoidance too, everything Euro NCAP assesses is present, including automatic braking to protect a cyclist when the truck turns and crosses their path, activated as soon as the indicator is used. This combination of very good visibility and strong protection of vulnerable road users earns the CitySafe label.
The Scania P series follows with 87% overall and also receives five stars plus CitySafe. The P series performs very well in both safe driving and crash avoidance and, just like the L series, is available with all driver assistance systems assessed by Euro NCAP, which work well from city roads to motorways.
The low cab helps direct vision, although the standard exterior mirrors can still create a local blind spot. A camera system compensates for this with continuous visibility around the right front corner. The P series is also available with a high-quality turn-across-path AEB that protects cyclists when turning right, important for urban use, and the braking system also works well in frontal situations with vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists. With the right optional equipment, this is a versatile and safe choice for regional distribution.
The MAN TGM achieves 80% overall and therefore five stars plus CitySafe. MAN supplied a TGM itself with all safety options included. What makes this result positive: it is the first MAN truck with five stars. The truck performs well in all three areas, safe driving, crash avoidance and safety after a crash, and just reaches the highest score. It shows how quickly truck safety is improving.
Euro NCAP is honest about the weaker points too. Direct vision from the cab is only “adequate”, no more than that. But with an optional, very good camera system, the driver sees much more. Driver monitoring is strong: it detects in time if the driver becomes drowsy and can even bring the truck safely to a stop if they no longer respond. In addition, there is a broad package of good systems to prevent crashes and stay within the lane. What is missing is a system that protects cyclists when the truck turns right. The fact that the TGM still receives the CitySafe label is due to the good visibility through the cameras and the strong protection in frontal collisions.
The DAF XD closes the list with an overall score of 62% and three stars, but with CitySafe. And it is precisely that combination that makes the XD a useful example. A lower overall score does not automatically mean that a truck is unsafe.
The XD stands out especially in safe driving. Direct vision is very good, thanks to a low beltline and, on the passenger side, a low door window that gives extra visibility of vulnerable road users. Indirect vision is also leading: a camera system with dynamic images, which in combination with the optional corner camera can replace the mirrors. This earned the CitySafe label.
The three stars are due to crash avoidance. The XD does this well, but less broadly than the top performers. Two things are missing: a system that steers back if the truck unintentionally leaves its lane and a system that protects cyclists when the truck turns right in the city. But on one point, DAF beats all the others: no comparable truck has as much safety on board as standard. With other brands, you need to order options to achieve five stars. With the XD, you simply get a lot of safety included.
That is exactly why this test is so useful when you buy a truck: the number of stars does not say everything. What a truck has on board as standard and what was optional matters at least as much.
At BAS World, you will find a continuously changing stock of new and used trucks from Renault, MAN, Scania, DAF, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz and Iveco, directly available and ready to drive. Still unsure between brands? In our blog on the top 10 most popular truck brands, you can see which models are most in demand.
Every truck first goes through our own inspection. We record the equipment, condition and documentation, so you can see in advance exactly which safety systems are actually fitted. Curious what this looks like? Read all about it in the blog about the technical inspection of a truck.
Curious about the possibilities? View the current stock of box trucks or contact one of our specialists to discuss what fits your operation.
