The European Commission has today (Wednesday, July 6) launched a public consultation on a revision of the rules governing the roadworthiness of vehicles in the EU, planned for mid-2023.
It said that roadworthiness inspections of vehicles including tractors, cars and lorries, are essential both for road safety and maintaining a vehicle’s environmental performance over its lifetime.
The results of the public consultation will feed into the revision of the EU’s roadworthiness rules, including those on periodic testing, roadside inspections for commercial vehicles, and vehicle document registration.
Roadworthiness consultation
The commission is inviting all those interested to express their opinions on the impact of the current legal framework, as well on the possible policy measures that could be taken and the impact they may have.
The Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy adopted in December 2020 underlined the EU’s commitment to improve road safety and the objective of zero road fatalities by 2050.
In this context, the commission said that the strategy also called for adjustments to the roadworthiness legislative framework.
Vehicles in Ireland
Ireland has two roadworthiness testing regimes, the National Car Test (NCT) and the Commercial Vehicle Test (CVRT).
The NCT applies to passenger cars, while the CVRT applies to commercial vehicles, trailers and buses and tractors with a design speed of more than 40km/h.
Possible results from the NCT or CVRT regimes are:
- Pass – the vehicle has passed the test;
- Minor – the vehicle has passed, with minor faults;
- Major – the vehicle has failed and must return to the centre for re-inspection within 30 days;
- Dangerous – the vehicle has failed due to defects that constitute a direct or immediate risk to road safety. The vehicle must not be used on the road under any circumstances.
The proof of test is a disc attached to the bottom right corner of the roadworthiness certificates. This must be torn off and displayed on the vehicle.
Motorcycles and light trailers are not subject to periodic roadworthiness testing. Since 2018, recognition certificates are issued for vehicles imported with a valid certificate of roadworthiness from another EU member state.