The number of dangerously defective cars being driven on Irish roads has reached a record level with over 128,000 vehicles being classified as “fail dangerous” when submitted for a NCT last year.
Figures published by the National Car Testing Service show a total of 128,548 cars were found to be unroadworthy to a dangerous level while being checked at a NCT test centre during 2024.
The number of dangerously defective cars detected last year represents 7.42 per cent of all vehicles checked by the NCTS in 2024.
It is the highest level of unroadworthy cars detected in recent years with the proportion of “fail dangerous” vehicles having grown annually from a low of 4.9 per cent in 2020.
The latest figures also reveal that 3,965 unroadworthy vehicles were again classified as “fail dangerous” when they were submitted for a re-test in 2024.
'Dangerous fail'
A vehicle categorised as “dangerous fail” is found to have a dangerous defect that constitutes a direct or immediate risk to road safety such that it should not be used on the public road under any circumstances.
A sticker stating “Failed Dangerous” will be affixed to the vehicle by a NCTS vehicle inspector who will also inform the motorist why and how their car is dangerous and unroadworthy
According to Applus+ – the Spanish company that operates the NCT on behalf of the Road Safety Authority at 50 test centres in the Republic – NCTS vehicle inspectors will also advise the owners of dangerously defective cars to have them towed away from the centre.
The company said customers are also read a statement that if they drive the vehicle off the premises, the NCTS will inform An Garda Síochána that a dangerous defective vehicle was just driven from the centre.
Applus+’s communications manager, Sinéad McKeon, said the reaction of motorists with a “fail dangerous” vehicle is mixed with some ignoring the warnings and driving off in their car from the test centre.
Ms McKeon said the high level of “fail dangerous” vehicles was probably linked to people not servicing their car on a regular basis.
“People don’t check on their car in advance of going in for a test and they are using the NCT as a diagnostic tool instead of getting their vehicle services first,” she added.
Some of the main reasons for a vehicle receiving a “fail dangerous result” include badly corroded bodywork; bald, bulging or damaged tyres; brake fluid leaks; car doors that do not close properly and brake lights not working.
At a county level, the highest share of “fail dangerous” vehicles last year was recorded in Cavan where 11.9 per cent of cars tested were dangerously defective – a total of 1,831 vehicles – followed by Leitrim (10.3 per cent), Clare (9.7 per cent) and Monaghan (9.4 per cent)
The lowest proportion of vehicles to be classified as “fail dangerous” was found in Offaly (6.1 per cent); Kildare (6.3 per cent); Louth and Waterford (both 6.7 per cent); Dublin and Wicklow (both 6.8 per cent) and Kilkenny (7.0 per cent).
Low pass rate
The latest NCTS figures also show that the pass rate for the full test has fallen to its lowest level in five years at 50.6 per cent – down from 52.9 per cent in 2023 and the recent high rate of 54.3 per cent in 2022.
A record number of 1,732,095 vehicles were tested last year – an annual increase of over 144,000 full tests.
A majority of vehicles submitted for a NCT in 11 of 26 counties passed the test.
However, the lowest pass rate was recorded in Cavan where fewer than 2 in every 5 vehicles passed the NCT with just 39.4 per cent.
Other counties with low pass rates included Leitrim (42.1 per cent); Monaghan (43.5 per cent); Roscommon (44.3 per cent); Longford (44.6 per cent) and Clare (44.9 per cent).
The highest pass rate was recorded in Offaly at 57.3 per cent followed by Limerick (55.5 per cent), Waterford (55.1 per cent) and Kilkenny (54.9 per cent).
The combined pass rate across the five test centres in Dublin was 52.4 per cent and 50.8 per cent for the six NCT centres located in Cork.
The pass rate on a national basis for lane re-tests last year was 87.2 per cent with 0.6 per cent of the total still being classified as “fail dangerous.”
The pass rate for visual (non-lane) retests was 99.6 per cent.
The NCT, which was introduced in 2000, is designed to reduce the number of road deaths by identifying defects in vehicles as well as enhance environmental protection by reducing harmful vehicle emissions.
Steering and suspension defects
The most common fault detected during checks on over 1.7 million vehicles last year related to steering and suspension which affected 15.0 per cent of all vehicles followed by lighting and electrical (14.2 per cent) and the side slip test (12.3 per cent) which checks on wheel alignment.
Around 1 in 10 of all vehicles submitted for a NCT in 2024 recorded a problem with their wheels and tyres with a similar proportion also having some type of fault with their brakes.
Private vehicles must undergo a NCT test when they are four years old and every two years thereafter until their 10th anniversary, after which they need to be tested annually.
The RSA stresses that the NCT does not replace or remove responsibility from the owners of vehicles to ensure their vehicle is in a roadworthy condition at all times.
It also points out that the test should not be used as a substitute for the regular maintenance that needs to be carried out on a vehicle.
