The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association has welcomed the fact that the European Parliament, EU member states and the European Commission reached a final agreement on a reformed system for approving vehicles before they are placed on the EU market – ‘type approval’.
Under this agreement, member states will have to carry out checks on vehicles circulating on their roads at the rate of at least one for every 40,000 newly-registered vehicles with a minimum of five tests per member state.
Twenty percent of these tests will be on emissions. The European Commission will also be empowered to conduct audits on each national type approval authority every five years.
The deal foresees the creation of a Forum for Exchange of Information and Enforcement, which has the potential to bring uniform interpretations to the system and increase EU oversight.
The strict criteria for technical services that conduct the tests, based on international standards and applied by accredited bodies, should also further improve the quality of vehicle testing.
