Vehicle inspection operators group guarantees ‘transparency through technology’

MANILA: The Vehicle Inspection Center Operators Association of the Philippines (VICOAP) held a virtual press conference today to shed light on the Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Center (PMVIC) project with the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

VICOAP President Iñigo Larrazabal explained the significance of a mandated vehicle inspection program in the country. He stated, “Every year, we lose 12,000 Filipino lives due to road accidents, and the second leading cause of this is mechanical errors. That’s more than the total of 10,000 lives that COVID-19 took last 2020, and these numbers just keep on going up.”

He added, “We are the ‘sick man of Asia’ for road safety and are at the tail end as far as quality and road safety is concerned."

The alarming number of road deaths motivated the group to start the PMVIC program in the country. As of now, there are 138 centers that were awarded with contracts to operate. The target is to inaugurate 200 more PMVICs in order to sufficiently cover the vehicle inspection for the entire country.

To further discuss the newly implemented system, Larrazabal was joined by VICOAP Internal Vice President Benson So and tech expert Juan Paolo San Mateo. So assured that every inspection will be highly transparent with the help of technology. The whole procedure is recorded in high definition by CCTVs, which were required by DOTr to be installed in every PMVIC.

 Larrazabal mentioned that every piece of inspection equipment was accredited by the DOTr and the Land Transportation Office (LTO), following the global standards on MVICs. All PMVIC personnel must also have an NC II Certificate in automotive servicing from TESDA.

The panelists clarified how their system differs from the previous emission testing system. The Private Emission Testing Centers (PETCs) are only conducting emission testing, which is just one of the 70 procedures that the PMVICs are taking care of. So added that PETCs are more concerned in saving nature, while the PMVICs’ priority is to save lives.

VICOAP presented a video to provide a step-by-step process of the new system. First, the vehicle must be registered on the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS) platform by the LTO. Vehicle owners may book an appointment online or have a walk-in appointment at the inspection center by presenting the OR/CR and the vehicle identification number (VIN). The payment can be processed online using debit or credit card, or through third-party payment centers. Customers may also pay cash through the PMVIC payment window. After that, the vehicle and the keys will be handed over to the PMVIC personnel to conduct the inspection. The procedure takes around 15 minutes. The results will be sent to LTO and it will be printed out with a “Pass” or “Fail” remark. If the vehicle passes the inspection, the owner can proceed with the LTO registration.

VICOAP also clarified the issues about the new system being a potential avenue for corruption. Larrazabal stated that every VICOAP member follows a code of conduct to ensure the survival and sustainability of the program. He explained that the privatization of the vehicle inspection service was stimulated by the success of the privatization of public utilities such as water and electricity. The group’s aim is to provide improved service to its customers, just like the other private sectors.

Image from Vehicle Inspection Center Operators Association of the Philippines

Also read: LTO still accepts emission certificates in areas without PMVICs