The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) postponed its Sept. 14 New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) public meeting due to anticipated severe weather from Hurricane Florence. The meeting was to be held at the U.S. Department of Transportation's headquarters in Washington, D.C. It has been rescheduled for Oct 1.

Hurricane Florence battered coastal areas of the North Carolina on Friday, and will continue to increase forward speed while spreading across the mid-Atlantic and into New England tonight and tomorrow. According to the National Weather Service, heavy rain, flash flooding and isolated tornadoes are possible west of Interstate 95, including the Washington D.C. area.

NHTSA's Oct. 1 meeting will encourage a public dialogue about evolving technologies and safety issues important to the nation's car buyers.

Under NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program new vehicles spanning diverse automakers undergo a series of crash testing. The agency then rates the vehicles with a system of one to five stars on how well they protect occupants in frontal, side, and rollover crashes. Five-star ratings signify the highest level of safety.

NHTSA's vehicle safety ratings appear on window stickers of new cars and can also be found on NHTSA's NCAP website at www.nhtsa.gov.ratings.