System to prevent unsafe cars being driven on roads to begin in October

It’ll mean that insurers will be legally obliged to notify the Department of Transport when it determines a vehicle is beyond repair, and also whether parts could be salvaged.

Currently, the department holds the legal records of vehicle ownership as part of the national vehicle and driver file.

When a vehicle is inspected by an insurance company, it can be written off. This is when it is considered beyond repair, or because even if it is reparable it would cost more than its value to repair, and is considered an economic write off.

If a consumer does unwittingly buy a written off vehicle, they are advised to contact the consumer watchdog CCPC to establish what their rights and options are. They are also advised to contact the gardaí.

It is estimated that the number of vehicles written off each year is in the tens of thousands.

“It is important for notification to be made to the NVDF where a vehicle is beyond repair, as otherwise it would be possible for it to be subject to superficial repair and resold, posing a risk to the new owner, passengers, and other road-users,” the department said.

“For some years, there has been an informal system under which some insurers voluntarily notify the department of write-offs which are beyond repair, so that the files on those vehicles can be locked – in other words, if a person tried to resell them as mechanically propelled vehicles it would not be possible as any attempt to change the registered own of the vehicle would be blocked.

“This would not prevent selling the wreckage for scrap, but would ensure that an unsafe vehicle could not be put back on our roads.” 

However, the Government has now moved to formalise this system with the Road Traffic Act to ensure that no unsafe cars find their way back onto Irish roads.

It said that, despite being passed many years ago, further legislation was needed to clarify the legal definition of a “vehicle insurer” before this part of the act could be passed.

The department added that 1 October was chosen as the date to make this as a legal requirement for insurers to notify it to grant a lead-in time to “allow for the necessary systems and processes to be put in place”.

This measure comes as pressure ramps up on the Government and the Road Safety Authority to take action to address the alarming surge in road fatalities in Ireland in recent years.

This includes new road safety legislation aimed at reforming the penalty points system and speed limits, as well as other measures targeting learner drivers repeatedly renewing without sitting their driving test.