Written answers
Thursday, 28 September 2006
Department of Transport
National Car Test
5:00 pm
Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 23: To ask the Minister for Transport the action he has taken on foot of the mid-term review of the National Car Test service. [30053/06]
Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I announced the findings of the mid-term review of the National Car Testing Service (NCTS) on 30th July 2006 and made arrangements for the full report of the independent review completed by PricewaterhouseCoopers to be placed on my Department's website.
The table set out below provides a summary of the PricewaterhouseCoopers report recommendations and the action taken to date concerning their implementation.
Responsibility for the NCTS has now passed to the Road Safety Authority since 13th September 2006 as a consequence the Road Safety Authority (Conferral of Functions) Order 2006.
| No. | Test item | PwC Recommendation | Update on implementation |
| 1. | Conformity of registration plates with legal requirements. | NCTS to provide, free of charge, registration plate stickers with relevant county name in Irish. Otherwise, conformance of registration plates to legal requirements should remain unchanged. | Accepted and implemented by NCTS since 31 July 2006 |
| 2. | Lamps on registration plates | Registration plate lamps should be considered for omission from the test. | As above |
| 3. | 'Amberness' of indicator lamps | Test for 'amberness' of indicator lamps should be considered for relaxation of tolerance or omission from the test. | As above |
| 4. | Replacement of light bulbs | There should be no change to the current arrangements in the event of bulb failure: this should remain a fail/refusal item. | As above |
| 5. | Cracked or chipped windscreens | Guidelines for interpretation of windscreen faults should be reviewed by Technical Advisory Forum (see recommendation 17), otherwise remain unchanged. | Recommendation accepted; technical consensus required to support any change. See recommendation 17 concerning the establishment of a Technical Advisory Forum |
| 6. | Windscreen washer operation | Windscreen washer operation should be limited to basic test of functionality with water available for owner to top-up reservoir if necessary. | Accepted and implemented by NCTS since 31 July 2006 |
| 7. | Retesting cars with new tyres | Tyre failures should be classified as visual only and retested free of charge unless there are other faults requiring the use of the ramp. | As above |
| 8. | Wheel nut checks | The Department should consider removing the requirement to check wheel nuts as part of the test. | Implementation of recommendation deferred pending further consideration. |
| 9. | Engine stress due to high revving during tests | The current method of emissions testing should continue for the present. | Recommendation accepted; technical consensus required to support any change. See recommendation 17 concerning the establishment of a Technical Advisory Forum |
| 10. | Test data different from local garages | NCTS should offer to benchmark underlying test results data (not just pass/fail) with local garages. | Recommendation accepted and to be implemented from 1 October 2006 |
| 11. | Test accuracy and consistency | NCTS should continue to explore best practice in respect of ensuring consistency of its own test processes and procedures. | Recommendation accepted. |
| 12. | Additional test centres | The Department should consider the feasibility of provision of a test centre at Inishowen. | NCTS is expected to advertise for a new centre in Inishowen shortly |
| 13. | Test waiting areas | NCTS should investigate the reasons for customer dissatisfaction and undertake a programme of improvement to the waiting areas. | Recommendation accepted and to be undertaken by 1 January 2007 |
| 14. | Internet booking | NCTS should introduce an optional pre-payment system for internet bookings. | As above |
| 15. | Improve staff-customer communications | NCTS should provide additional training on customer care and should consider the introduction of comment sheets for customers. | Accepted and implemented by NCTS since 31 July 2006 |
| 16. | Calculation of test due dates for imported vehicles | We recommend that the test due dates for imported cars should be calculated with reference to the date of first registration in Ireland. | Recommendation accepted; implementation subject to IT modifications to the National Vehicle and Driver File. Subject to the necessary modifications being finalised, it would be the intention to implement this recommendation from 1 January 2007 |
| 17. | NCTS/ VRU communications | We recommend that the Vehicle Registration Unit and NCTS work to implement full file transfer of data to NCTS, as soon as possible. | As above |
| 18. | Technical advisory forum | A technical advisory forum should be set up with representatives of, inter alia, the Society of Irish Motor Industry, NCTS, motoring organisations and An Garda Síochána. | Terms of Reference for the proposed Technical Advisory Forum are being finalised. |
| 19. | Mutual recognition of car testing | The Department should participate, at European level in any discussions that could lead to mutual recognition of testing standards in various EU member states | Recommendation accepted. |
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