NCT test frequency

ElectraX

I got my car NCT'd today and thankfully it passed no problem:D It's a 2006 car and was first registered in April 2006. Just checked the certificate they gave me and it says that it's due back in April 2012 for next NCT.
Should that not be 2013?
I thought you only had to get it done every two years??

CiniO

ElectraX wrote: »

I got my car NCT'd today and thankfully it passed no problem:D It's a 2006 car and was first registered in April 2006. Just checked the certificate they gave me and it says that it's due back in April 2012 for next NCT.
Should that not be 2013?
I thought you only had to get it done every two years??

You are rights. It is supposed to be done every 2 years, with the first test after 4 years of first registration.

So first test was due on April 2010, and next is on April 2012.

coylemj

CiniO mightn't have made it clear that the cert. that you get is valid for two years from the date the test was due, not the date the test was taken.

You might feel hard done by but they want to remove any incentive for people to delay taking the test, hence you will still have to do your second test in April 2012 regardless of when you submitted it for it's first test.

Eoin

Your car should have done the NCT last year, so you've been given 2 years from then. I presume they do it so people aren't rewarded with a longer expiry date by not doing the test in time.

ElectraX

Ok thanks- I only got a letter about the test in December saying that my test was "due soon". Had no idea it was due last year, would have got it done then For some reason, I thought it was for cars five years and older, actually thought I was getting it done early!:p

Lanshane

Just a quick question after reading this. Has anybody heard anything as to when they might bring in the 'annual NCT test'?
Now that will make things difficult for people.
Tks

Satanta

Lanshane wrote: »

Just a quick question after reading this. Has anybody heard anything as to when they might bring in the 'annual NCT test'?
Now that will make things difficult for people.
Tks

From June this year (2011) http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/vehicle_standards/national_car_test.html

Since 2002 onwards, all cars 4 years and over are tested. Vehicles that pass the test will have to undergo repeat tests every 2 years. From June 2011, cars over 10 years old will be tested each year.

slimjimmc

ElectraX wrote: »

Ok thanks- I only got a letter about the test in December saying that my test was "due soon". Had no idea it was due last year, would have got it done then For some reason, I thought it was for cars five years and older, actually thought I was getting it done early!:p

Just for future reference, the NCT are not obliged to remind you of your test due date. You alone are responsible for ensuring the car is booked and tested in time. Many people will tell you they don't even inform you of first time tests so don't assume they'll remind you come renewal time. You can do your next test up to 90 days in advance and it will still valid until Apr 2014.

burrentech

Just read about the annual test is for cars that are 10 years or older. The government/revenue sure want you to give them the VRT on a new car and not run an older car. If you look at the statistics, cars going for their first test are more likely to fail than an older car. It has been proven that people who run older cars tend to take care of the issues when they arise and thus pass the test more often than newer cars which may be neglected once the first free service has been done by the dealer.

The annual test regime is yet another tax on the people least able to afford it. When will this government stand up for the ordinary citizen. It sure seems that as long as you can afford to replace your car with a new one every few years, you'll avoid this unfair tax.

I'm glad I'll be leaving the state in a few months.

Tigger

Where are you going cos they probably only have yearly nct there too

burrentech

Tigger wrote: »

Where are you going cos they probably only have yearly nct there too

Probably back to the Netherlands. They changed the tests based on the actual test figures. Older cars get a two year ticket, newer cars have an annual test :cool:

Tigger

burrentech wrote: »

Probably back to the Netherlands. They changed the tests based on the actual test figures. Older cars get a two year ticket, newer cars have an annual test :cool:

thats only applies to vintage cars

ie over 30

all others need yearly testing

Diesel, petrol and hybrid vehicles first registered after 1 January 2005 First test 3 years after first registration and every 1 year thereafter
All vehicles first registered before 1 January 2005 First test 3 years after first registration and every 1 year thereafter

from their site

jimmycrackcorm

So if you import an April 2006 car in January 2012, not alone do you have to nct it straight away but also nct it again 4 months later?

Tigger

acually you used to but its chganged for the better

now imports are nct'd for two years from date of import
it will be 1 year for cars over 10 yrs from 01-06-11

CiniO

Tigger wrote: »

acually you used to but its chganged for the better

now imports are nct'd for two years from date of import
it will be 1 year for cars over 10 yrs from 01-06-11

That's true.

Anyway, it's still agains EU rule about unlimited transfer of goods.
If imported car has a valid test certificate issued in country where it came from, it should be accepted in Ireland, until it's expiry date.
F.E I imported a car from NI last June with MOT valid until March 2011.
I was forced by law to NCT it straight away after importing.
That's obviously illegal, and if someone would make a complaint to European Commision, they would cause the Irish Law to be changed.

coylemj

burrentech wrote: »

The annual test regime is yet another tax on the people least able to afford it. When will this government stand up for the ordinary citizen. It sure seems that as long as you can afford to replace your car with a new one every few years, you'll avoid this unfair tax.

I'm glad I'll be leaving the state in a few months.

Buy a new car every few years to 'avoid this unfair tax' :eek:

How many NCTs do you think you'd pay for out of the VAT and VRT that goes to the Govt. when you buy a new car?

As far as I know the Government doesn't make any money out of the NCT. Car testing has been on the statute book since the Road Traffic Act was passed in 1961 but it took the EU to force the Government to activate the testing system. It is designed to take dangerous cars off the road and serves a very useful purpose though I would argue with special interests like tyre dealers getting away with the ripoff about the 'E' mark, there should have been some way to recognise that imported Japanese cars are not dangerous because their tyres don't have the 'E' mark.

Would you like to point us to a civilised country that does not have car testing or if they do, it's free?

burrentech

coylemj wrote: »

As far as I know the Government doesn't make any money out of the NCT. Car testing has been on the statute book since the Road Traffic Act was passed in 1961 but it took the EU to force the Government to activate the testing system. It is designed to take dangerous cars off the road and serves a very useful purpose though I would argue with special interests like tyre dealers getting away with the ripoff about the 'E' mark, there should have been some way to recognise that imported Japanese cars are not dangerous because their tyres don't have the 'E' mark.

Would you like to point us to a civilised country that does not have car testing or if they do, it's free?

Please define civilised! This wiki article shows the US & Canada for example have almost no safety inspections at all, in the US some states have even removed requirements for emission testing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_inspection This list is not extensive.

How many injuries and deaths have been attributed to 'dangerous' cars that are 10 years or older? If it is so important to now go for annual testing why are cars under 10 years old only subjected to bi-annual test? Why are new cars excluded from test for 4 years?

The recall rate of new cars shows that they are the most dangerous, some recalls are only done after injury or death shows a design flaw which has been 'missed' by the manufacturer. Just search for car recalls due to death or injuries shows all manufactures have had to recall their cars due to dangerous (and in many cases lethal) design faults. In some cases it has been shown that the manufacture is aware of a fault long before they are forced to fix it because of an injury or death.

The government authorise a private company to perform tests and issue NCT certificates for those cars passing. You can be sure that the Revenue get a cut somewhere in the whole process.

Guy:Incognito

burrentech wrote: »

The government authorise a private company to perform tests and issue NCT certificates for those cars passing. You can be sure that the Revenue get a cut somewhere in the whole process.

The test costs €50. Head to a garage and ask for a price for a similar test you get with the NCT. Emissions, braking tests on the rollers, up on a ramp to check everythign underneath etc.

burrentech

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

The test costs €50. Head to a garage and ask for a price for a similar test you get with the NCT. Emissions, braking tests on the rollers, up on a ramp to check everythign underneath etc.

It takes on average 20 minutes from start to finish, so 3 cars per hour going through that's €150/hour by my reckoning, plus they squeeze in the retests which adds an additional €28 and in most cases its only a visual inspection so the return on those are huge. Look at the stats on NCTS.ie and you see that 45% of cars are failed first time round. In countries where the work is farmed out to existing garages (UK, Netherlands, that I know of) the garage trade is lining up to get themselves authorized to do the work, they wouldn't if there was no profit in it. If you've been charged more than €50 for a pre-test, I'd suggest you shop around next time.

Guy:Incognito

burrentech wrote: »

in most cases its only a visual inspection so the return on those are huge. Look at the stats on NCTS.ie and you see that 45% of cars are failed first time round. In countries where the work is farmed out to existing garages (UK, Netherlands, that I know of) the garage trade is lining up to get themselves authorized to do the work, they wouldn't if there was no profit in it. .

Of course they are. One of the best scams in the world is a system where the garage that tests it, fixes it. It's a licence to get paid to "find" faults on cars. The NCT system is much better. Theres any amount of media reports of dodgy garages in the UK coming up with work that needs doing to pass the mot. Not to mention peopel bunging the garage a few quid to pass a car.

burrentech wrote: »

plus they squeeze in the retests which adds an additional €28 and in most cases its only a visual inspection so the return on those are huge. .

Visual retests are free.

3DataModem

coylemj wrote: »

Would you like to point us to a civilised country that does not have car testing or if they do, it's free?

Isle of Man.

Test once, lasts forever.

Guy:Incognito

3DataModem wrote: »

Isle of Man.

Test once, lasts forever.

He said civilised.:)

burrentech

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Visual retests are free.

Last NCT, the car failed on a perished brake hose, charged €28 for the retest, tester took a look under the car, saw new hose, passed the car. Visual inspection €28!!!!!

MacGyver

visual retest only counts if it doesnt go on the ramps such as bulbs.

burrentech

MacGyver wrote: »

visual retest only counts if it doesnt go on the ramps such as bulbs.

It didn't go on any ramp, he just knelt down and looked under wheel well. How Róisín Murphy is that :P