Mr. Mark Synnott:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to provide an update on the NCT service. I am pleased to report that all test centres have shown significant improvement in terms of reduced waiting lists and increased availability of appointments since the last time I was here. Our plans outlined to the committee in February continue to be implemented and are proving effective.

I will start by acknowledging the efforts of the entire NCTS team, both management and staff, in test centres, the call centre and the back office, for their continued support in very challenging circumstances. We continue to try to source qualified mechanics in Ireland and across Europe, with limited success. Our recruitment team has been successful in sourcing qualified mechanics in the Philippines. We initially secured an allowance from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to bring in 100 roadworthiness inspectors from outside the EU and recently secured an increase in the limit from 100 to 200. I thank the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Richmond, and his Department for this constructive step in helping us to address the challenge.

The first eight months of 2023 saw the highest throughput in an eight-month period in the 23-year history of the NCTS. Almost 200,000 more inspections were carried out compared with the same period in 2022. As anticipated, vehicles with a test due date in the past rose to a peak of 436,000. This has now dropped back to 363,000 and reduces further to 338,000 when compliance with motor tax is included. Of these 338,000 vehicles, 52,000 have already been tested, have failed and require retesting; 198,000 have been provided with a booking; and 4,200 are on a waiting list for an appointment. Notification of the obligation to have the vehicle tested has issued in all cases. In the case of approximately 84,000 vehicles, therefore, no effort has been made to become compliant even though we have issued notification. This could possibly be because the vehicles are on a garage forecourt awaiting sale or otherwise off the road. Almost 40,000 vehicles have been tested which are not due for testing until later this year or next year.

In February, I reported a figure of 47,000 vehicles on our priority list. Within a week of the media attention surrounding the Oireachtas joint committee meeting in February, the list rose to a peak of almost 65,000. I am pleased to report that the list is currently under 9,500, with many of those remaining on the list due in the future, or with specific booking requirements. While not quite at the level we would call business as usual, it is more than manageable. The booking lead time for each test centre is reported on the NCTS website under the statistics section. For the first two weeks of September, the average booking lead time was under 19 days, down from 27.1 days in March. We understand that this is short of what we committed to, but we have made significant progress in recent months.

More than 88,000 vehicles have failed to show for appointments so far this year. Additionally, over 42,000 more customers have cancelled immediately prior to their appointment. This is almost double what it was in pre-Covid times. As previously advised to this forum, the NCTS is looking at ways to incentivise customers to attend their appointments. We developed plans to move the service to prepayment in quarter 4 2023. This plan was prompted by a continuous level of customer no-shows; to reduce the threat of armed robberies and break-ins; to improve transparency; to align with the principle of digital first; and to align with our contractual obligation to remove cash payments from NCTS centres. It is useful to note that a vehicle owner who has prepaid is almost three times more likely to attend an appointment than one who has not.

Members should note that the chronic shortage of qualified mechanics in Ireland reported in February continues to be an issue and can now be noted in the service and repair side of the industry. Some 103 qualified mechanics have joined the NCTS so far this year. Fifty-one vehicle inspectors have joined due to recruitment in the Philippines, on top of 44 in November last year; 52 vehicle inspectors have joined from recruitment activities in Ireland and the UK; and we expect 48 more Filipino recruits who are in the process of joining us to arrive before the end of the year. Finding accommodation for new recruits from outside the EU remains a significant challenge.

The high level of voluntary staff attrition noted in 2022 has moderated and returned to normal levels. Despite the recognised shortage of qualified mechanics in Ireland, we currently employ approximately 630 vehicle inspectors. This is the highest volume of vehicle inspectors ever within the NCTS and we are the largest employer in the automotive sector in Ireland. Other measures to address the backlog include offering overtime to inspectors; recruiting additional test centre administration staff to allow vehicle inspectors to focus on testing vehicles; and continuing to explore alternative resourcing solutions for the NCT.

As discussed at this meeting in February, our adherence to our customer charter obligation had been questioned. At the time, the NCTS advised that it had been operating in compliance with our charter obligations since they were reinstated, post Covid, in October 2022. This was subsequently confirmed by the RSA’s supervision services contractor, which has carried out a series of independent audits. I am delighted to announce that we are opening a new NCT centre in Castleisland, County Kerry. It is the 50th NCT centre. We expect to commence inspections there on 9 October. We continue to look for suitable locations in Limerick-Clare, Cork, Cavan-Monaghan and Dublin to build new centres.

The year 2023 has been very tough for our staff. However, I am very proud that despite the challenges, we have maintained our very high quality standards. The authority’s external technical service provider has conducted more than 4,700 audits on our testing staff so far this year and our target of 99% test result accuracy has been exceeded.

While recognising that the NCTS has a specific issue with availability of appointments, it is important to note that our customer satisfaction scores remain very high and are improving further. Our survey, with more than 7,500 respondents in the year to date, shows almost 90% overall satisfaction with the service and greater than 60% satisfaction with booking wait times. We were delighted to read in The Irish Timeson 19 June that according to research from the CX Company, the NCT was acknowledged as the customer excellence champion in the public service.

In summary, the NCTS has seen significant improvements in service delivery in recent months; waiting lists have massively reduced; booking lead time for appointments has improved; availability on the website has improved; and our calculated risk to bring qualified mechanics in from the Philippines has proven successful. I thank our customers for their patience.