Sir, – I recently requested a replacement NCT certificate from the National Car Testing Service (NCTS), to be informed that “unfortunately due to banking guidance we are unable to accept personal cheques”.
I was advised to send on a postal order or a bank draft to pay the due fee of €15.50 (no electronic transfer facility available).
In these days of swift EFT payment, I associate postal orders with sending money to hungry children in the Gaeltacht, and bank drafts with buying a house!
The Irish banks issue cheque books to provide a cheap means of payment for the convenience of their customers. A single postal order costs €2.50 to process.
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Why does this monopolistic company, entirely dominant in their sphere and reliant on 100 per cent nationwide compliance of car owners, refuse to accept them, or not provide an EFT facility for replacement certs?
Are cheques somehow tainted in some respect due to contrary “banking guidance”?
Does NCTS actually stand for No Cheques Thanks? – Yours, etc,
PATRICK CALLAN,
Portmarnock, Co Dublin.