Thousands of NCT no shows and late cancellations each week are "severely impacting" the long wait times experienced by other vehicle owners, with some running into next year.
According to NCT provider Applus, the average booking time for an NCT appointment in Ireland is 25 days, however some motorists have reported wait times of several months, up to the end of 2023 or even into next year.
A live register shows the breakdown of expected wait times for each of the 49 NCT centres in the country, with expected wait times ranging between 17 days and 36 days.
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However, when the Irish Mirror attempted to book a test in Naas, with a 35-day expected wait time on the NCT statistics page, the nearest available test was on November 1, 2023 or January 15, 2024.
When applying for the same test at the NCT centre in Carlow, with an expected wait time of 28 days, the nearest available bookings were all in January of next year. Blarney, Cork with a 23 day expected wait, had tests available in December at the earliest.
Following a query from the Irish Mirror, NCT provider Applus stated that the average booking time is only 25 days "contrary to what was reported at the weekend."
They said: "We do understand that some customers who go online may only see appointments for mid to late 2023, however, if they require an earlier appointment than those available online, we are asking them to go on www.ncts.ie and place themselves on the priority list."
Applus added that the "vast majority" of customers who use the priority list will receive an appointment in four weeks.
Following backlash last year and earlier this year over NCT wait times, Applus has said that the first four months of 2023 saw the second highest throughput in a single quarter in the 23-year history of the NCTS.
This has been achieved through the provision of overtime to provide cover for leave and additional shifts for staff. A total of 42 vehicle inspectors have been recruited for centres, with a further 16 of these in training, set to begin testing next week.
Thirty of these individuals were hired from the Philippines, with 20 more set to arrive next week and begin testing in June.
Despite these improvements, Applus has said high levels of no shows and late cancellations are affecting the wait times of those looking to get their vehicle serviced within a reasonable timeframe.
They said: "Unfortunately, we are still experiencing high levels of no shows with over 2,500 customer no shows per week, along with a further 1,000 late cancellations each week.
"As you can imagine this is severely impacting the business and our ability to offer these appointments to other customers."
They are asking customers, who know in advance, to inform their NCT centre "so that those appointments could be offered to those on the waiting list."
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