End of the Puspakom monopoly – will this lead to Malaysia adopting mandatory laning tests like the UK?

Last week it was announced that Puspakom will is no longer the only unit providing vehicle inspection services from next year, when the company’s current franchise ends on August 31, 2024. Although the franchise will be renewed, it will no longer be a monopoly in the segment.

Depending on how many competitors emerge in the future, this will open the way to providing motorists with more options for performing auto checks. The move to boost the playing field is finally opening up the possibility of making routine road tests mandatory like the UK’s Department of Transport.

Malaysia actually has something along those lines, in the form of Voluntary vehicle inspection (VVI) the program, although as its nickname suggests, has nothing imperative about it. Introduced as part of the original sketch of National Automotive Policy (NAP 2014)the program led very early to make laning tests a prerequisite somewhere in the future.

Applies to cars over 5 years old when it was first brought up for debate, it has come to light and is still available, available through Puspakom, although the handling of this part is very much much for those who want to check 25 points for their car. vehicle when free campaigns come out and have the patience to do so – I’ve never heard of anyone set a voluntary check on their vehicle when it’s available. campaign to promote it.

It was also later stated that the test centers would not be limited to any agency or company like Puspakom, which is crucial for such a scheme to work, due to the limitations of only having one player handles it. Simply put, it is only available through Puspakom which will create a bottleneck if it is implemented as a mandatory regulation.

The government’s decision to open business to many service providers has made the idea of ​​working towards mandatory periodic road tests a reality, although this will still take a long time to happen. Frequency, test scores, and cost are the things that will need to be determined.

In testing by the UK Department of Transport, a number of vehicle components are examined to determine that they meet legal standards. These range from body/vehicle construction, doors, mirrors, brakes and lights to tires/wheels, steering and suspension as well as seats/seat belts, windshields and even horns. The current 25-point VVI test we have here is very similar in terms of test coverage.

In the UK, all cars over three years old are required to undergo MOT scheduled tests to ensure they are still roadworthy. If something goes wrong, it needs to be fixed before the car can be taxed and on the road.

However, it should be noted that in the UK even small workshops are licensed and authorized to take MOT tests and issue certificates, making the process quick and easy. . The latest information here suggests new players can’t be a regular conference and will need to run a setup similar to Puspakom, so we’ll see how this develops.

If routine checks eventually become a thing in Malaysia, the roads will be a safer place. By extension, the system can be used as a more reliable measure of whether older cars are fit for the road, rather than oversimplifying, ambiguous. End of life policy will consider any vehicle over 20 years old as scrap.

Older cars, if well maintained – and proven by routine inspections – can still be considered road-usable under such a scheme. However, it will almost certainly incur additional costs, which may not be suitable for motorists. This is something the government needs to consider.

What do you think about the possibility of Malaysia having mandatory vehicle checks? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section.