Evolution in electric vehicle safety legislation and global harmonisation activities

Electric vehicles are very different from conventional internal combustion engine vehicles and present some new challenges for safety that must be accommodated in legislation. This paper reviews the latest developments in vehicle safety legislation with respect to electric vehicles. The development of two new United Nations (UN) Global Technical Regulations is the main focus for the paper; namely, UN Global Technical Regulation No. 13 on hydrogen and fuel cell vehicles and a draft UN Global Technical Regulation under development on electric vehicle safety. However, consideration is also given to the key differences between the major legislative jurisdictions and the implications for the development of Global Regulations.