Building public trust will be critical to the successful rollout of automated vehicles, with Thatcham Research warning that stronger safety standards and more realistic testing methods are needed if motorists are to embrace increasingly automated driving technologies in Britain. The UK automotive research organisation has welcomed progress on the implementation of the UK’s Automated Vehicles Act 2024 but says regulatory frameworks must evolve to ensure both automated driving systems and advanced driver assistance technologies perform reliably in real-world conditions. The comments coincide with the release of new Thatcham Research testing that identified shortcomings in the way Intelligent Speed Assist (ISA) systems are currently assessed for regulatory approval. According to the organisation, while ISA has the potential to significantly improve road safety by helping motorists remain within posted speed limits, existing regulations measure system accuracy over the distance travelled rather than at the critical moments when speed limits change. Thatcham argues this approach can mask real-world performance issues that directly affect driver confidence. Testing across three production vehicles found one system achieved 91.3 per cent accuracy under the existing distance-based assessment, but only 74.3 per cent accuracy when evaluated using an event-based methodology that measures performance at each speed limit change. Even the best-performing vehicle recorded an event-based accuracy of 90.3 per cent despite achieving 98.39 per cent under the current approval method. The research also identified instances where ISA systems displayed speed limits of five, 10, 15 and 100 mph, none of which are legal public road speed limits in the UK. Thatcham warns these errors can trigger unexpected vehicle behaviour, particularly when linked with Adaptive Cruise Control systems, potentially resulting in harsh braking or unintended acceleration. Principal ADAS Engineer Yousif Al-Ani said systems should filter implausible speed limit readings before they reach the driver. “Presenting a driver with readings