Michael McAleer answers your queries
From Colm Whelan:
Can you please clarify something for me? Is there a legal requirement to undergo an NCT?
I've been told that there is not and that I can obtain my tax cert without undergoing the test.
Also are the gardaí required to check for NCT certs when they stop you? Are there any insurance implications? Also if there is no legal requirement why should we undergo the test when our cars are regularly serviced?
The law is not as clearcut as it may seem in this area, for there remain loopholes in the law regarding the National Car Test (NCT).
However, to deal with query step-by-step, there is a legal requirement to undergo the NCT. Under the Road Traffic Act its up to the Garda to enforce the law and you will be fined if you do not display your NCT certificate. Soon penalty points will also come into effect for those not in compliance.
As for those who are exempt, it seems that converted vans - small hatchbacks with rear windows removed and which have been converted into vans - are exempt from any tests, either for vans or cars.
Others that don't have to do the test include vintage cars and those that reside on islands off the Irish coast not joined by road or bridge.
As for taxing your car, you can do so online without any requirement to prove you have an NCT. However, insurance companies will take issue with the lack of NCT and it may cause problems in a claim situation where it is proved that some mechanical failure could have contributed to the accident.
From Peter Wallace:
I have been using an insurance broker for the last 15 years of motoring and it has worked out well. But my wife has been claiming that it's a waste of money and I should arrange the insurance myself. Any advice?
My first advice is to be wary of disagreeing with your wife. Personal experience suggests that even when you win you lose.
However, she has a valid point. Brokers offer a comfort and convenience to those who do not want the hassle of arranging their own cover. All you have to do is send off a cheque and hey presto you're covered. The implication in most instances is that these industrious representatives of your personal interest have scoured the market looking for the most reasonable cover on your behalf.
However, be aware of the broker's fee, which can vary around double figures. We have found that between €30 and €50 are pretty common charges.
A colleague of ours recently told his broker tale on these pages, and it's worth recounting here.
He was quoted €890 for cover. However when he contacted the named insurance company directly he got a quotation for €750 plus one week's free cover. To quote Mr Boyd: "Fired by my competitive zeal I rang another broker. This time the quotation was for €691, including the broker's fee of €25. And this policy was with the same company that had quoted me €750 half-an-hour earlier.
"So in the space of an hour or so I had obtained like-for-like cover with a large and reputable company for €260.35 less than the original quotation from the broker with whom I had done business for years."
My colleagues experience is With growing competition for motorists' custom and the facility of getting a quote literally within minutes on the telephone or online, it would appear brokers need to pull their socks up and their prices down.
From Gavan Barlow:
As the current Celica/MR2 models are now five years old (November 1999) can we expect a model relaunch for Winter 2005 for a 2006 plate?
The current cars were revised for January 2003. I currently own a Toyota Celica (2002). It has a history of four to seven year life cycles over its seven generations, while the MR2 has only had three generations since it was launched in 1984, which were 1990 and 1999 respectively.
From Ross O'Grady, Limerick:
I was reading the article in Motors (6th October) about the police impounding peoples cars if they dont have insurance etc.
If the police knew that the people weren't going to reclaim the cars, or if they werent collected in a certain amount of time, would they be able to sell them off cheaply to the public, instead of getting them scrapped?
Send your queries to
Motors Help Desk, The Irish Times, Fleet Street, Dublin 2 - or e-mail them to motorshelp@irish-times.ie