Failed the NCT on rear numberplate

tacklemore

Had my NCT test yesterday, and I failed, because the digits on my rear numberplate were in "italics". My gripe is that I got the numberplate made up especially for the previous NCT, and it passed then, no bother. The tester wasn't happy when I pointed this out. Where is the standardisation of the tests? Exactly how is the numberplate assessed? The digits weren't in italics, and the plate was clean and could be clearly seen. My recheck won't cost anything, but thats not the point. Has anyone had any similar experiences?

r3nu4l

So, you modified the plate you got with the car and one tester calls it italics while another thought it was satisfactory.

My question to you is this, does your number plate fall into line with the law?

If not then the current tester was right to fail you and the previous tester was wrong and in that case I would agree that there needs to be standardisation.

If your number plate is completely legal then you should have argued the point.

So which is it?

JohnW

If you check out the link, there is a section dedicated to number plates
http://www.ncts.ie/nctmanual.pdf

r3nu4l

See pages 10 and 11 of the PDF (pages 3 and 4 of the booklet). If your reg plate falls into those rules and dimensions then you should have passed, if not then the failure was correct.

Weeshie

Thanks guys for the link to the NCT manual. Mine failed on Tuesday for - get this - frayed upholstery on the driver's seat! WTF??!!! As I speak the car is being re-upholstered, but having consulted the finer points regarding seats in that manual, they royally screwed me. The manual says:
SEATS:
1. Loose on runners or insecurely mounted (DEF NOT)
2. Collapsed or framework damaged (DEF NOT)
3. Driver's seat - seat so damaged that driver's support is impaired.

As far as I'm concered, this says f@ck all about frayed upholstery. Robbing b@stards. Needless to say, when I go for the re-test, this page will be shoved in his face (or where the sun don't shine). No consistency whatsoever in these tests. Rip-Off Ireland at it's best.

ianobrien

Print out the Manual and leave it on the front passanger seat on the car during the test.

That way the tester knows that you know the fail points and if the car fails on anything, you can check the relevant sections there and then, or ask him to find it!

It helps to read it before the test, and know where each item is in the book

milltown

Unkel should be along any minute now with his sob story.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Tough!! If the plate aren't the simple standard they they were right to fail you. The last guy got it wrong. If it's outside the law then it's outside the law.

tacklemore

The problem was that the original rear numberplate had to be replaced, due to wear, basically the reg couldn't be read in the nighttimeI got a plate made up, the letters are the same height as the front numberplate, and both look very like each other. It just seems that there should be some class of common standards in the NCT centres, and avoid all this confusion.
Weeshie made a good point with the seats. I had a similar situation in a Honda Civic. All I did was put a seat cover on the seat, and it passed. Alot easier and cheaper than reupholstering. Hint for anyone in the future!!

Seanie M

My fiancées brother was failed for not having his number plates with the Irish bit on it! Go figure, like we need that for road safety. He brought it back with a sticker from a labelling machine stuck on where the Gailiamh bit should have been, for the retest, and was passed.

colm_mcm

surely if you requested a standard legal number plate when you bought it, then that's what you should have got?

Is that what you asked for?

Capt'n Midnight

JohnW wrote:

If you check out the link, there is a section dedicated to number plates
http://www.ncts.ie/nctmanual.pdf

Cheers was going to order it off the GPO next week.

Is this on a sticky somewhere ?

tacklemore

Just as a follow up, I got a new number plate made up, and had my recheck today. I went to a different test centre, and I passed this time around. I showed the tester the previous number plate, and he said that the tester must have been having a bad day, because the previous number plate that failed was fine, and he would have passed it. Funny stuff.