Mr. Harry Lee:

What I am proposing would be a first step because there is no paper trail. There is no proper history for the majority of vehicles on our roads where there are issues. We need to take the first step towards the end goal of having a central database where all work carried out on all vehicles is documented. The first step should be write-offs, because some legislation and building blocks are already there. At the moment only As and Bs are recommended to be sent to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, but that is not necessarily where the majority of the problems are. They are also in Cs and Ds. In addition we must also consider the number of vehicles that do not go through insurance or through the self-insured. There are no guidelines or legislation outlining the process of what should happen when these cars are in this situation.

At the moment if a vehicle is written off by an insurance company and I am requested to go out and ensure it is roadworthy, I do not know the reason the vehicle was written off in the first place. Sometimes vehicles from outside the industry can pass through many hands without any ownership paper trail whatsoever. When someone like me comes along, we do not know what has happened. That applies to the majority of vehicles across the board, but especially with second-hand imports. Some figures suggest 10% of vehicles from the UK alone are write-offs.

Again, there is no paper trail. There is an expectation on the owner to be an expert in these things, but that is not possible given the way the vehicles are moving from a technological and a design point of view. It is not possible, even for some of us within the industry, to be an expert on everything. I believe the building blocks are there to put something in place. This would be a first step. I suggest that if we take the first step, that can lead on to something proper.