Microcars are booming - but how safe are they?

Sebastian Hofmann lives in Unterhochstätt, a village in the municipality of Chieming in Upper Bavaria - very idyllic between the shores of Lake Chiemsee and the mountains. He drives a microcar to music rehearsals, to the traditional costume club, to the fire department, to school in Traunstein, or to his future apprenticeship in Inzell, 25 kilometers away.

It's a big relief for his mother: she already drives Sebastian's two younger siblings around the area, so Sebastian can travel independently and can even do a lot of things for her.

Small, slow, accessible

You can drive microcars with a driving license class AM, the scooter driving license, from the age of 15. The vehicles are booming: According to figures from the General Association of Insurers, 80 percent more microcars are on German roads today than three years ago - 46,000 in total.

The smallest vehicles are limited to 45 km/h and may weigh a maximum of 425 kilograms. And that's exactly where the problem lies. Kirstin Zeidler from the insurer's accident research department says that microcars look like a car and therefore appear much safer than a moped.

Too light for enough security?

But that is only true to a very limited extent. Because of the weight limit, important safety features are missing, such as a standard airbag.

There is still no comprehensive accident analysis for microcars in insurers' accident research. However, the numbers indicate that microcars are, on average, involved in fewer accidents than mopeds, says Zeidler.

But when there is a crash, the accidents often have more serious consequences. Zeidler is therefore calling for the weight limit to be adjusted - then the safety equipment could also be improved.

Attention, Microcar

Sebastian Hofmann also reports that queues often form behind his slow vehicle when he's on the move - but he says he drives very far to the right anyway, so the others would overtake him.

As an alternative, he only has his moped - just as slow, but without a body. Next year, the ADAC wants to carry out a crash test with microcars, then the discussion will probably continue.