BYD Atto 3 deliveries paused in this country over child seat compliance issue

Chinese automaker BYD has temporarily paused deliveries of the all-electric Atto 3 in Australia due to a compliance issue that has not yet been resolved. The carmaker informed customers through a letter that deliveries will be delayed for seven days, starting October 21. The Atto has breached Australian motor vehicle compliance regulations because the rear middle seat is missing an appropriate top tether to use for a child seat.

This issue came to light after the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) withheld its five-star safety rating for the EV to allow for a review by federal regulators about its compliance. In the letter sent to customers, the automaker wrote, “BYD Automotive regrets to inform that we will be pausing deliveries of the Atto 3 for seven days commencing 21 October 2022."

The carmaker also informed customers that the matter relates to the use of a child seat if positioned in the centre of the middle rear seat, and the appropriate location for an anchorage point to enable the child seat to be secured. “BYD understands that for the vast majority of customers this may not be of relevance, however as safety is and always will be our number one priority, we continue to work with the (federal regulator) to satisfy their request," the letter stated.

BYD Atto 3 was also recently unveiled in India and the pricing of the car is slated to be announced soon. The EV has secured a five-star safety rating in the Euro NCAP crash test. The Euro NCAP announced the crash test result right after the automaker introduced the BYD Atto 3 electric SUV in India on October 11. The BYD Atto tested by Euro NCAP has secured 91 per cent for adult protection and 89 per cent in the child safety segment. On the safety assistance segment, the EV has scored 74 per cent.