Euro NCAP has slammed the crash test performance of the Renault Zoe and Dacia Spring electric vehicles, suggesting that safety has become “collateral damage” in the group’s transition to EVs.

The facelifted Zoe received zero stars from the organisation after the model update was adjudged to have represented a “degradation” of safety standards, with a downgraded air bag system and a lack of “meaningful crash avoidance technology”, Euro NCAP said.

The Spring crossover of budget sister brand Dacia recorded one star despite a crash test performance branded “downright problematic”, meanwhile.

Euro NCAP suggested the Spring presented a high risk of life-threatening injuries for driver chest and rear passenger head in frontal crash tests and marginal chest protection in side impact.

Michiel van Ratingen, the secretary general of Euro NCAP, said: “Renault was once synonymous with safety. The Laguna was the first car to get five stars, back in 2001. But these disappointing results for the ZOE and the Dacia Spring show that safety has now become collateral damage in the group’s transition to electric cars.