The state government will ask the federal government to introduce a safety-rating system while offering “any support necessary”. “We want to work with manufacturers and farmers to develop a scheme which would give buyers the information they need at a glance, to make the safest possible choice,” NSW Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean said.

Since 2011, 115 people have been killed in quad bike accidents on Australian farms, 32 of them in NSW. A safety-rating system for quad bikes was a key recommendation of the NSW Deputy Coroner’s 2015 inquest into quad bike deaths.

NSW Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair said the government and farmers had to “work together on this issue to ensure we get the best outcome”.  “The NSW government is providing incentives to encourage farmers to improve the safety of their quad bikes, education programs to support safer usage and now we want to give consumers better information to support their decision-making,” he said.

The state government has already invested $2 million in its Quad Bike Safety Improvement Program which provides free training and helmets as well as rebates for protective devices and safer side-by-side vehicles.

For more information on the program visit www.safework.nsw.gov.au or call 13 10 50. To apply for rebates visit www.nswfarmers.org.au