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VOSA Data Debacle
After penalising garages for not handling customer data correctly, VOSA have, earlier today (Monday 2nd June) issued this e-mail to MOT Trade Body representatives:
“There is an issue with the VTS Risk Letters sent out at the end of last week in that some letters incorrectly reference the VTS number and name. Please be assured that we are working on this problem. In the meantime please ignore the letters and we will re-issue later this week.
Thanks
Malcolm J Tipping
PVD Business Change Manager”In fact just about every single one of the nearly 19,000 ‘risk’ letters sent by VOSA to every Testing Station to notify them of whether they are in the red, green or amber sections of VOSA’s risk assessment results, are incorrect!!
So if you have had your letter from VOSA, the ‘scoring’ details contained do not necessarily refer to your garage. This applies whether the letter says you are in the green, amber or red zones.
The problem, according to project manager Malcolm Tipping, arose due to a failure in VOSA’s mail merge system used to blend the results of the risk assessment process with the names, addresses and VTS numbers of Testing Garages.
New letters will be issued to every VTS by the end of the week.
VOSA - put yourself in the red zone!
IAM Favours 4-2-2
The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) have claimed that the MOT Test frequency should be reduced to every two years with the first Test after the fourth year of a car’s life, rather than the third as it is currently. They have also said that they suspect that the high first time failure rate of 21.6%” is because garages fail cars to get the repair work.
The Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMIF) strongly refute that saying “The IAM Trust goes on to claim that there is no need for the UK MOT test to go beyond the European minimum standard, and that the Government should go ahead with its desire to delay the first MOT test until vehicles are four years old. They would then only be checked every two years (4-2-2). Vehicles currently receive their first MOT test at three years old, and are then re-tested annually (3-1-1).
Stephen Coles, Head of MOT Operations for the RMIF, believes that the UK's test regime should be kept as it is: 'Thanks to the high requirements of the 3-1-1 MOT test, the UK has one of the best road safety records in Europe. Most other countries check fewer components and have a less rigorous method of inspection, so it is inevitable that less defects are detected, even after four years have elapsed.'
At MOT Testing we fully support the RMIF view, and would go further. Changing the Test as suggested by the IAM would be both irresponsible and dangerous. The MOT Trade Forum, of whom our editor is the Chairman have carried out thorough research which suggests that at least 150 more deaths on the roads (caused by defective vehicles) would result from such an irresponsible change to the MOT Test frequency, with a corresponding increase in both serious and minor injuries. There would also be an increase cost to society as a whole.
The MOT Test serves a very important road safety role in our society and the IAM should be very wary of making both unsubstantiated accusations about Testing Stations and a flawed recommendation to change the MOT that would cause substantially increased loss of life and injuries to both motorists and pedestrians, with corresponding trauma and grief to the friends and relatives of those who would die and be injured as a direct result of such a change.
Since these matters would not only appear to be outside the IAM's sphere of interest and area of expertise, but also to fly in the face of the motor industry wisdom and common sense, we remain puzzled as to which data they are basing their claim on, and to what purpose.
Proposed Test Fee increases
The Department for Transport has issued a consultation document on proposed MOT fee increases “…during the summer of 2008…”, this is will mean a slippage of perhaps 4-5 months. MOT Testing editor Jim Punter asks “Why?” and discusses the issue of repeated delays in the ‘anniversary’ of the MOT fee review over the last decade – estimating that Testing Stations have lost thousands of pounds as a result.
The table on our mot-rates page shows the proposed fee increases, which includes an increase in the ‘slot fee’ of 14 pence which goes, of course, to VOSA/Siemens. Further information can be found on the DfT’s website
If you want to find out more, subscribe to MOT Testing and receive our May issue.
VOSA to hold ‘talks’ on their traffic light enforcement policy
VOSA have invited the MOT trade’s official trade bodies, and other specialists to meet with them at the end of May to explain the details of how their enforcement policy will develop following the completion of their ‘risk assessment’ review of every VTS in the country. Following the conference they will then fully implement the system whereby MOT garages in the red zone will get more enforcement attention, those in the amber zone less, and very little at all for three years for those in the green zone. They anticipate that there will be 10% of garages in the red, 30% or so in amber, and up to 60% in the green.
CITA conference in Portugal
CITA, the international body providing specialised advice to Governments on periodic vehicle safety inspections, generically known in Britain as the MOT are having their international conference in Portugal this year between May 6th to May 8th. The specialised papers presented by Government Agencies like Britain’s VOSA and some commercial organisations provide Governments with vital information on which to base their strategic assessments as to future vehicle testing policies.
Turmoil at the top of VOSA
Although the details are unclear, it is apparent that there are going to be significant changes to the way VOSA is structured. It is rumoured that many Directors will lose their jobs and that the way in which the MOT Scheme will be controlled strategically could drastically change. Nothing has yet been formally published but when we have ‘firm’ information, then we will keep our website visitors fully informed.
RMI in Media moves
Recently the RMI seem to have decided to shift their focus onto the MOT with two ‘strong’ press releases. Yesterday Stephen Coles their Head of MOT Operations warned Testing Stations that using the MOT computer “VOSA can access your test information whenever they choose, without needing to visit your test station. You won't even know that they are checking you”.
He went on to recommend “The site manager should obtain a Test Log Report for every month and cross reference each test completed against a job number or other means to ensure that there are no unaccounted tests. Each site should review the Performance Report, Test Log and Garage Information File Report once each month as a minimum”.
In an earlier press release the RMI deplored the Government’s delay in releasing their review paper on the future of the MOT, including the suggestion that Mot Testing should be carried out every other year with the first Test after the fourth year. They noted 'Much of the MOT test sector could disappear within a year if the Government extend MOT test intervals and that the move to a 4-2-2 system could leave many motor sector businesses with little or no MOT work for up to a year: 'A move from a 3-1-1 testing programme to a 4-2-2 will mean that many cars will not need to be tested. With less custom coming through their doors, we will see thousands of MOT testing stations forced to shut down, and many thousands of qualified testers made redundant, perhaps half of all the testers in the UK.'
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