Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 December 2014
170. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the provisions in place to ensure a person who is awaiting a national car test, which was booked on 16 November 2014 but will not be taken until 30 January 2015 due to a backlog, is not issued penalty points considering the persons NCT certificate is due to expire on 1 January 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47451/14]
View answerChanges to the penalty points regime which came into effect on Monday last, 8December, were legislated for under the Road Traffic Act 2014. These changes relate to a range of measures, including the National Car Test (NCT) system.
It has, for some years, been an offence to use a vehicle on public roads without a valid NCT certificate. Prior to the recent change, this offence involved a direct summons to court and the assignment of 5 penalty points on conviction. The provisions in the 2014 Act bring this offence within the fixed charge notice system. An alleged offender will now be issued with a fixed charge notice and, on payment of the €60 charge, will have 3 penalty points assigned to their licence. The driver will, of course, continue to have the option of going to court where 5 points will still apply on conviction.
Enforcement of the relevant legislation is a matter for An Garda Síochána. If a person’s NCT test date is imminent, it will be a matter for the Gardai to use their discretion. However, responsibility rests with owners and users of vehicles to ensure their vehicles are in compliance with the law.
The Road Safety Authority (RSA) informs me that the NCTS is in a favourable position to deal with current demand and the Authority has also run a campaign over the past few months, to get people to book early, as the test may be undertaken up to 90 days in advance of the due date without affecting the expiry date of the new certificate. This system, is to ensure that owners have ample time to have their vehicle tested before their current NCT certificate expires.
The National Car Testing Service (NCTS) is currently experiencing a strong demand as car owners respond to the changes in the application of fixed charges to NCT certificates. This was anticipated and NCTS has recruited in excess of 60 more staff to deal with the additional demand and will have 565 Vehicle Inspectors in place in January, the highest in the history of NCT.
The RSA also advised me that the majority of car owners, including those who require an early test, will receive an NCT appointment within 28 days and additional resources have been put in place to help deal with such requests. I understand from the RSA that the availability of appointments on the NCT website is not a reflection of the total number of slots available to customers. If the person referred to by the Deputy has relied solely on the website booking system, I would suggest that they follow the advice on the NCTS website which clearly advises customers that if they cannot obtain a suitable slot online to contact the NCTS call centre directly on (01) 413 5992.
