Romania Auto Registry Says Blame For Used Cars Overload Misplaced

The authority said in reply to accusations launched by Premier Calin Popescu Tariceanu that the Ministries of Finance, Transportation and Environment failed respond to RAR’s proposition to set up yearly tests for old cars.

 

On Monday, Tariceanu said he will have the transportation minister verify whether RAR observes test requirements of used cars, following information that the authority issued conformity certificates for technically unfit cars.

 

However, RAR officials said the institution cannot be blamed for the imports of old used cars.

 

“It is not our fault that so many junk cars are imported. It wasn’t RAR the institution that made the tax (environment tax – e.n.) as it is,” RAR spokeswoman Lorena Stroe said.

 

Romania's Government plans to suspend for three to six months the pollution tax for the acquisition of new cars in order to limit the imports of used cars.

 

“Used cars imports are killing the local market. (…) I will have a talk with the president over this subject and we will decide shortly on measures to limit these imports. The most efficient would be to suspend imports by annulling the tax for new car purchases. Practically, we will keep the tax only for second-hand cars,” Tariceanu said Monday.

 

The international financial crisis has affected several sectors of the Romanian economy, including the automotive industry, where companies like Dacia, owned by Renault, have interrupted several times their production, citing lower demand in the local market, due to the pollution tax applied for new car purchases.

 

In Romania, the number of new second-hand cars imported in January-September 2008 more than doubled on the year to 205,086 units, while new car registrations fell 2.4% in the same period.