NCT due again in 6 months.

G

Galway Joe

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Folks, my NCT was due in Dec 2022, but due to the delays it wasn't tested until end of may 2023. It failed due to a tyre with a bulge on the inside and this was rectified and re-tested this week (June). The car passed but is due its next nct in Dec 2023, I was under the impression that it was due in 12 months (over 10 yrs old) from the date of inspection. I know that in industry - statutory tests are certified from the date of inspection. Any thoughts................
 
Galway Joe said:
I know that in industry - statutory tests are certified from the date of inspection. Any thoughts................
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That would make good sense. But it is not the rules for the NCT - it goes on the date of original registration.
 
Brendan Burgess said:
Two ways of looking at it.

People might well delay getting their car tested as the next test is also put to a later date.

Under the current system, there is no advantage in delaying getting your car tested on time.

Brendan
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I agree entirely - in theory. The problem is that the current waiting period to get an NCT slot is so long - often about 6 months. So 6 months until the next one is due - or less, if there is any re-test involved in passing.
 
The NCT test is a farce. I can get a 10 year old car tested 3 months early and receive a test certificate valid for 15 months. It's not about car safety but is all about revenue generation. They state that a 10 year old car is only safe on the road for 1 year, but to get early fee payment they will allow this car to be on the road for 15 months without a retest.
 
S class said:
The NCT test is a farce. I can get a 10 year old car tested 3 months early and receive a test certificate valid for 15 months. It's not about car safety but is all about revenue generation. They state that a 10 year old car is only safe on the road for 1 year, but to get early fee payment they will allow this car to be on the road for 15 months without a retest.
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I wonder whether Irish drivers' complete frustration with our farcical NCT is shared by drivers in other EU countries. Does anyone know?
 
S class said:
The NCT test is a farce. I can get a 10 year old car tested 3 months early and receive a test certificate valid for 15 months. It's not about car safety but is all about revenue generation. They state that a 10 year old car is only safe on the road for 1 year, but to get early fee payment they will allow this car to be on the road for 15 months without a retest.
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That sounds like an overly cynical interpretation. The 3 month rule allows some welcome flexibility around the testing date without being penalised. If you go any more than 3 months early you reset the anniversary date for the next test.
 
In the good old days of NCT on demand. I got a phone call from NCT advising me that if I brought forward the test on my almost 10 year old car by a few weeks to a date just before it's 10th birthday I would get a 2 year test certificate. I took this advice and NCT gave me a certificate to keep my car on the road until it was almost 12 years old. Another example of advance revenue being more important to NCT than road safety.
 
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Early Riser said:
That sounds like an overly cynical interpretation. The 3 month rule allows some welcome flexibility around the testing date without being penalised. If you go any more than 3 months early you reset the anniversary date for the next test.
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Nothing cynical about my reply. If it is safe to issue an NCT cert for 15 months on a ten year old car, then all 10 year old cars should be issued with a 15 month safety cert.
If it's not safe to issue a 15 month cert on a 10 year old car, then NCT are placing advance payment fees over car safety.
 
S class said:
Nothing cynical about my reply. If it is safe to issue an NCT cert for 15 months on a ten year old car, then all 10 year old cars should be issued with a 15 month safety cert.
If it's not safe to issue a 15 month cert on a 10 year old car, then NCT are placing advance payment fees over car safety.
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So you think any flexibility should be avoided?
If you book your test 2 months early, the anniversary date for testing should be reset and you go again in 12 months?
What about 1 month early - the same thing?
Or should you just book the exact day?
There would be no complaints about this "inflexibility"?
 
It's a safety test and if the safe time between tests for a 10 year old car is 12 months, then no 10 year old car should receive a safety certificate of over 12 months.
Flexibility should not compromise safety.
The same should apply to cars under 10 years old. 2 year certificate only.
 
S class said:
It's a safety test and if the safe time between tests for a 10 year old car is 12 months
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Nobody says that the safe time between tests is 12 months. The car must be maintained properly between tests in order to remain safe.

The NCT is carried out at regular intervals to ensure ongoing compliance with safety requirements, whether that is 12 months or slightly more makes no difference.
 
I was waiting 7.5 months after my 2022 cert expiry. Just 4 months later I have another test this week. I had to phone to get a test appointment as all the slots on like were Jan/Feb 2024, I was amazed to get offered a test within 2 weeks of phoning. The system as it is, is broken.

They will never clear the backlog of tests by retesting cars 3/4 months after a previous test (pass) This is not a good use of their strained resources. In Jan they were talking of introducing certs valid 12 months from date of test, and now there is no talk of it
 
A neighbour of mine is always 2 steps ahead of everyone.
He has 15 month NCT validity on an older car.
I also notice he has a tax disc valid for 2 years.
Thats a new one to me.
 
It will never operate effectively when it has been farmed out to a monopoly.
On the other hand the DOE test for commercial vehicles is operated by many different
providers. Last year I booked my van for a test at Spanners. There were tests available on the day I checked their website and every day after. I had my test done on the due date and did not even have to queue.
 
llgon said:
Nobody says that the safe time between tests is 12 months. The car must be maintained properly between tests in order to remain safe.

The NCT is carried out at regular intervals to ensure ongoing compliance with safety requirements, whether that is 12 months or slightly more makes no difference.
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That situation is okay for a person skilled in car maintenance. They would recognise a safety issue at any given time. However to the ordinary Joe who is clueless about car mechanical equipment, this is definitely a safety compromise. 15 months is not slightly more than 12 months, it is 25% more. That "sure it will do" attitude to safety would not be tolerated in Aviation, Railways or Industry. My 2019 car is currently almost 6 months overdue its test thanks to the farcical NCT.
 
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