NCT operator fined over waiting times

THE COMPANY responsible for providing the National Car Test (NCT), Applus+, has been fined after car owners experienced a backlog when trying to book a date for a test early last year.

The penalties relate to the increase in waiting times and a fall in the number of reminder notices issued to drivers notifying them that their car was due for a test.

These targets are specified in the 10-year contract Applus+ holds for the NCT.

Documents seen by The Irish Timesshow that Applus+ had sought derogations from the penalties in the first and fourth quarters of the year.

The RSA decided on a partial derogation and imposed the penalties. It is understood these include a sizeable fine and a significant number of free tests and retests for customers. The total value of the penalties incurred has not been released but The Irish Timesunderstands it's over €1 million.

In a statement on the fines, the RSA said: “Applus+ Car Testing Service Ltd is required to meet a number of performance measures in accordance with its contract with the RSA.

“While a performance adjustment was imposed in respect of certain issues in 2010, this was Applus+’s first year delivering the NCT service. It is important to note that, in general, the RSA is satisfied with how Applus+ met its obligations under its contract, particularly in the latter half of the year.

“The RSA continues to manage the contract proactively to ensure Applus+ is providing a high standard of testing and customer service.”

Since early last year Applus+ has taken a number of steps to increase capacity including longer opening hours, hiring additional staff and opening two new centres at Greenhills in Tallaght and Carndonagh in Donegal.

A spokesman for the RSA declined to comment on the size of the fine, saying that the authority’s contract with the company precluded this. An Applus+ spokeswoman referred questions to the RSA.

Complaints from motorists who were having difficulty securing a test date during the start of 2010 led the chief executive of the authority Noel Brett to warn Applus+ it could face fines unless the backlog was dealt with.

At the time the authority said there were three main reasons for the backlog; that since May 2009 motorists faced penalty points if they do not hold a valid NCT; an increase in the number of older cars being tested; and most vehicles are registered within the first three to four months of the year.

The RSA uses two companies to monitor the performance of the National Car Test, PricewaterhouseCoopers and AA Ireland. The former concentrates on corporate governance and systems oversight while the latter performs a “mystery shopper” role and brings a car to different test centres to check that the results being generated are correct.

A car test costs €50 and a retest €28. Last year Applus+ carried out 1.4 million tests and retests.

Applus+ secured the 10-year car testing contract in a tender process and took it over on January 1st, 2010. Based on an estimate of 11 million car tests over the period, the contract is worth in excess of €400 million.