NCT centres have shown a disparity of almost 20% between the highest and lowest pass rates this year.
Almost 551,000 were carried out in the first four months of 2023, with a national pass rate of just over 54%.
But there’s a big variation throughout the country.
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At at 42.5%, Cavan’s pass rate is the lowest of all 49 centres,with Derrybeg in Co Donegal not far off that with 43.96%.
Others with low pass rates include Navan (44.49%), Clifden (44.74%) and Monaghan (46.50%).
It’s a much different story in Abbeyfeale, Co Limerick, which enjoyed a 61.85% success rate this year. Running that close is Deansgrange in Dublin, at 61.53%, followed by Killarney (61.08%), Ballinasloe (60.40%) and Tralee where 59.72 % of vehicles passed.
CompleteCar.ie spokesman Dave Humphreys said: “Such a large disparity suggests there is an inconsistency in how the tests are being conducted.
“We expect to see a slight increase in failure rates in rural areas, where cars are driven further and on poorer road surfaces, but that doesn’t fully explain the variance.
“The high failure rates could also be attributed to motorists sending their cars in for an initial test to see what it fails on and then only rectifying that aspect to gain a pass.” One in every 15 cars which have taken the NCT test this year have been found to be unsafe to drive on public roads.
A total of 36,407 cars – or 6.6% – have been classified as “failed dangerous”, meaning it’s illegal to drive them because they’re in such bad condition.
Cavan has the highest failed dangerous rate of 10.67%, followed by Carrick-on-Shannon in Co Leitrim (10.45%).
Mr Humphreys said: “The number of cars being ‘failed dangerous’ is a concern, given how many other potentially dangerous cars are on the road awaiting test.”
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