Transport Minister announces 2 recall decrees, 276 vehicles immobilized
The Minister of Transport, Communications and Works Alexis Vafeades announced on Monday the issuance of two decrees regulating vehicle recalls, according to which a total of 276 vehicles are immediately immobilized, 138 due to recalls for Takata airbags and another 138 due to recalls for brake problems.
He said the first decree concerns the recall process and provides for the immediate notification of owners by distributors and the Department of Road Transport, as well as the implementation of general recalls within 18 months, or if the DRT deems that the process should be accelerated.
According to the Minister, the second decree on information through certificates and declarations requires those who register or transfer vehicles to provide the competent authority with a certificate that the vehicle is not subject to recall and that it has been entered into the distributor’s database for future information on recalls.
Regarding the immobilisations, he noted that for 138 vehicles subject to recall for Takata airbags the manufacturers have concluded that they should be immobilised, the Certificate of Conformity has been suspended and the registration cancelled, while he said that for another 138 with a recall for brake problem the Certificate of Conformity has also been suspended and the registration cancelled, bringing the total number of vehicles immobilised to 276.
He added that about 80,000 cars are under recall for airbags, whose owners, he said, are advised to approach the manufacturers’ distributors for more information on risks and to set a date for the implementation of the recall.
He added that the DRT has revised the time allowed for the completion of recalls for Takata airbags from 18 to 8 months.
Exceptions apply in cases where there is no manufacturer (e.g. Saab), there is no known recall procedure (such as for old vehicles for which no records are kept) or there is no manufacturer’s representative or distributor in Cyprus (such as for vehicles imported second hand).
As noted, in such cases, owners will submit a declaration of recalls accompanied by certificates from a survey conducted on the manufacturers’ website or another certification body announced by the DRT.
He also said that this arrangement is applicable for as long as the exceptional measures provided for in the legislation are in force, with the DRT working to strengthen the information chain of vehicle owners and will attempt to integrate these vehicles into the databases of the manufacturers’ companies or cooperate with foreign certification bodies that have access to the manufacturers’ register, an action expected to be completed soon.
Asked about the process of implementing the recalls and whether there will be a different treatment to the owners of used cars from the distributors, Vafeades said that this is a private exchange between the owner of the used car and the distributor in which the state cannot intervene.
He added that based on the experience so far, the distributors manage all cases according to the origin, condition and circulation of each vehicle after the relevant inspection, adding that the ministry will wait for the market response before possibly issuing a new decree to mobilise additional mechanics.
He added, in response to a related question, that the Ministry has not committed to providing guarantees for the ordering of airbags, but all distributors have been asked to submit the problems they face to see how the Ministry can help, with the sole aim, he said, of increasing the replacement rate of airbags.
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