Skoda Fabia hatchback - Reliability & safety

While the Skoda Fabia is too new for data on its reliability to be available, the closely related SEAT Ibiza and Volkswagen Polo both feature in our latest Driver Power survey. The Fabia also gets more safety kit than ever before and received a five-star rating when tested by Euro NCAP.

Skoda Fabia reliability

Both the pre-facelifted versions of the Ibiza and Polo received average scores for reliability and build quality in Driver Power 2021, with the two models coming 58th and 48th respectively out of the top 75 models. With similar engines but more space, we'd expect the Fabia to go ahead of these models when it arrives in the rankings. Considering its sister cars have been out for a few years, Skoda should also be able to capitalise on making any reliability improvements learnt during this period. In our brand survey, Skoda outperformed VW and SEAT finishing 12th out of 29 manufacturers. Overall, owners were satisfied with the reliability of their cars with only 13.7% reporting a fault in the first year.

Safety

It might be a supermini but the Fabia is clearly targeted at families, so it's great to see features like the option of a top and bottom ISOFIX child-seat mounting for the front passenger seat. Other safety technology will include self-parking devices and Travel Assistant, which can steer the car and adjust its speed in heavy traffic.

Unlike the outgoing Fabia, the latest version gets the full gamut of driver aids like lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot warnings and alerts to tell the driver if traffic is present as they are reversing out of a parking space or driveway.

When the new Fabia was crash-tested by Euro NCAP in late 2021, it achieved a full five-star rating. The model performed strongly in all areas, earning 85% and 81% scores for adult and child occupancy respectively, plus a 70% score for vulnerable road user protection and a 71% rating for its safety assistance systems.

Full LED headlights and rear lights are standard, boosting visibility and ensuring other traffic can spot the Fabia in poor conditions. A heated windscreen will also be available to help clear ice and condensation in winter.