Loophole in the nct

Mycroft H

An old neighbour of mine has his 94 saab 9000 since '98. What puzzles me is that hes never been told to get a nct. Never. He has never even gotten a letter from them, at all. He updates his road tax every year online and insures in every year too. But hes never been asked for one at all.....

Is there many other people like that?

Saab Ed

landyman wrote: »

An old neighbour of mine has his 94 saab 9000 since '98. What puzzles me is that hes never been told to get a nct. Never. He has never even gotten a letter from them, at all. He updates his road tax every year online and insures in every year too. But hes never been asked for one at all.....

Is there many other people like that?

Thats because 2 years ago they stopped sending letters. Its up to you the owner to remember.

Mycroft H

Saab Ed wrote: »

Thats because 2 years ago they stopped sending letters. Its up to you the owner to remember.

Oh i didnt know that. But hes never been asked for it since he got it in '98

mickdw

landyman wrote: »

An old neighbour of mine has his 94 saab 9000 since '98. What puzzles me is that hes never been told to get a nct. Never. He has never even gotten a letter from them, at all. He updates his road tax every year online and insures in every year too. But hes never been asked for one at all.....

Is there many other people like that?

If he never had insurance, nobody would tell him he needs it either but he obviously does. Its his problem if caught and if involved in accident, insurance payout will be very poor and possibly complicated when car has no valid test.

McSpud

mickdw wrote: »

If he never had insurance, nobody would tell him he needs it either but he obviously does. Its his problem if caught and if involved in accident, insurance payout will be very poor and possibly complicated when car has no valid test.

+ 1.

I can't imagine he has driven for 10 years without going through a Garda checkpoint - they would take the keys off him.

Mycroft H

McSpud wrote: »

+ 1.

I can't imagine he has driven for 10 years without going through a Garda checkpoint - they would take the keys off him.

Sure he only goes down to the local supermarket to get bread and milk. And hes probably been stoped but hes keys have never been confiscated

Yakult

I thought you needed a valid nct to tax a car?

mickdw

R_H_C_P wrote: »

I thought you needed a valid nct to tax a car?

You did when the test started originally but they seemed to stop asking for it. Might have something to do with all the road tax revenue they were missing out on when people had an NCT failure and couldnt then tax the car.

jhegarty

I think they it ended becuase of an NCT strike. No one could tax thier car.

galwaytt

mickdw wrote: »

..... Its his problem if caught and if involved in accident, insurance payout will be very poor and possibly complicated when car has no valid test.

Incorrect. Your NCT will not be accepted by an insurance company as proof of roadworthiness. This is why they still use assessors to inspect cars involved in claims, as distinct from just asking to see your NCT cert. The corollary of that is the absence of it doesn't warrant presumption of unroadworthiness....

Juan Pablo

McSpud wrote: »

+ 1.

I can't imagine he has driven for 10 years without going through a Garda checkpoint - they would take the keys off him.

I very much doubt that. Didn't have an NCT on my car for a good 18 months, went through many a checkpoint and not so much as a mention from the Garda as to the lack of NCT. The previous owner had the car for almost 5 years and he never bothered getting it NCT'd. Care to guess the occupation of the previous owner? Yup, a Garda :pac:. When I NCT'd it last year it was the first time it was in a test centre despite being 9 years old at that stage. Sailed through. I was contemplating selling it at the time and figured it would be easier to do so with a vaild NCT. My guess is that the gardai don't really give a toss about NCT, valid tax and insurance would be a different matter though.

pcardin

Saab Ed wrote: »

Thats because 2 years ago they stopped sending letters. Its up to you the owner to remember.

Not true! I've got a letter from them last Friday. My cars NCT expired just week before.

Voodoomelon

I smiled at the the thought that this was a "loophole". You walk past your NCT disc everytime you get in your car, how many reminders do you need?

Saab Ed

pcardin wrote: »

Not true! I've got a letter from them last Friday. My cars NCT expired just week before.

I think you're right but I just found this on the NCT website

"Owners of cars that have been off the road or have not been taxed for over 3 months will not be notified and it will be necessary for the owner to contact NCTS directly themselves."

rebel.ranter

McSpud wrote: »

+ 1.

I can't imagine he has driven for 10 years without going through a Garda checkpoint - they would take the keys off him.

They don't really pay attention to the NCT obviously.

bazman

My understanding:
- NCT did stop sending reminders, but I believe they have sarted sending reminders recently again. There is no requirement for the NCT provider to send reminders, just as there is no requirement for the government to send you a reminder to tax your vehicle. They do so to enhance customer service - the responsibility for having valid tax, NCT and insurance is clearly with the owner of the car.
- The Gardai have the power to confisicate a car without an NCT, but that doesn't mean that they will do so. I suspect it will become increasingly important with the focus on road safety and gardai on the street will be instructed to use this power.
- Pretty soon (definitely within next year) it will again become mandatory to have an NCT cert in order to tax your vehicle.
- Worth noting that the new NCT contract from 1/1/10 was won by Spanish company, replacing SGS.

Sizzler

McSpud wrote: »

+ 1.

I can't imagine he has driven for 10 years without going through a Garda checkpoint - they would take the keys off him.

Well thats horseshoite for a start. My car is NCT'd but the disc is in the glovebox and I have never been asked where it is or indeed if the car is NCT'd at any Garda checkpoint. Was stopped last week and the Garda was more interested where I was going than where my NCT cert was :rolleyes:

fonda

Gardai's number 1 priority is tax!
After that Insurance
And then they dont give a f**k about NCT

smash

If you tax your car online it doesn't even ask about NCT

galwaytt

fonda wrote: »

Gardai's number 1 priority is tax!
After that Insurance
And then they dont give a f**k about NCT

Ho ho, not so!

My wife was followed for about 4 miles, into Galway, about 10 days ago. She spotted the GTC car in the mirror, so was being careful. Got to Dunnes Stores carpark at Briarhill, and as she gets out of hte car, GTC pulls up behind the space and he says 'you have no NCT on that car'. Which is true He said 'next time I see this car, you'll have an NCT on it'. Which, once again, is true !! (booked for 19 Mar, actually, soonest date I could get).

So, it shows: they do watch, and interestingly, they can check it from the roadside........

Car was taxed and insured, so no probs there. (Actually it's been taxed twice, with no NCT.....)

Voodoomelon

Does not having a valid NCT also come with a hefty fine? I think I read it was a least €1000?

furtzy

Voodoomelon wrote: »

Does not having a valid NCT also come with a hefty fine? I think I read it was a least €1000?

Local paper here in Meath is full of fines for no NCT every week. They are very fond of their new ANPR here ....€250 fine seems to be the norm