The new Toyota Yaris has become the first car to score five stars in Euro NCAP’s updated test programme.

It’s the first car to have been subjected to a new frontal offset test which replaces one previously used since NCAP started testing in 1997. It’s also the first test to feature a countermeasure for injuries in far-side impacts. 

The Yaris has been praised for the way it responds to side impacts.

A moving, deformable barrier assesses the protection a car offers its occupants as well as the risks the impact poses to the car in general.

Two centre-mounted airbags in the car inflate in order to limit the occupants’ movement to the opposite side of a vehicle should a side impact occur. It helps to limit the risk of occupant-to-occupant contact. 

Michiel van Ratingen, Euro NCAP’s secretary general, said “Congratulations to Toyota on a top rating for the Yaris. This has been a tough year for all concerned and I am grateful to Euro NCAP’s labs and employees who have worked hard to deliver safety, while staying safe.

“We have had to adapt quickly to new working practices, and it is pleasing that the first car rated this year should have gone so far to address the safety issues that are emerging as top priorities.”

The Yaris’ range of crash avoidance technology has also been highlighted by NCAP as it can stop the vehicle during turning to avoid a crash with oncoming traffic.