Frustating nct test experience

steph79 · 05-07-2023 9:28pm #1

Upon completing my nct test on the 3rd of July, i was given a NCT Report ,

the report indicates that the test failed on 2 visual defects and also that the retest fee would be 0 € ,

which implies that its only a visual test.

Thankfully my mechanics garage is near enough the nct centre so i visited him there and then and after inspecting the car , he required me to go back to the nct centre and ask if they could give more info about the rust patch since it wasn't obvious to him , i got back to the centre and got my inspector to write down exact location of rust patch ,which he did reluctantly ,before informing me that they weren't allowed to mark defects with white spray anymore , and giving me a lecture about it being a common fault with my car brand , i thought nothing more about it and got my mechanic to look into it ,

I go back to the nct center this evening (5th of july ) with my original nct report and the car to show one the inspectors , one of the inspectors came out and had a look at the work and was happy enough with it , tells me to meet him at the office so he 'd print the nct cert ,

Something went wrong when he tried to print the certificate and could hear him say " uh why did he change it " , the confusion got worst and they actually had to phone call the original inspector to see what was happening ...as he works a different shift.

The inspector that had promised the cert , came out again and said :

I'm very sorry but he said he told you that you'd need to do full retest and that i now have to pay 28 euros, i was also given a new nct report , which is the exact same as first report but something or someone has changed their mind and i have now to go for the 28 euro retest and im not getting the cert now. no further explanations

I don't recall original inspector telling me anything about full retest needing equipment , and if so why did he not simply hand over the correct paper work ,i would of simply booked and paid for it online, obviously another nct report was created after i left the nct centre , or was it created after i came back on the day to ask for more details about defects exact location , perhaps this annoyed inspector,???

It's all very confusing and after having have to wait 5 months for the test after i booked , and having had to come back in for a visual retest and passed this , i still have no cert to show and i'm being asked for more money again and more time wasted,

so frustating....its such a money racket...

mk7r · 05-07-2023 9:37pm

I'd say the first tester made a mistake, any rust repairs like that would be a paid for retest on the ramp (normally regardless of their location)

You can complain to applus but in my experience you will get very few places

greasepalm · 05-07-2023 9:50pm

Is it not written on top of report if free or a fee needed paying.

Do they not have a ramp for viewing things like this not on the test lanes.

steph79 · 05-07-2023 9:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811191#Comment_120811191

Not sure , but the thing is that when the mechanic came out of the centre to check the work this evening , he didn't seem one bit surprised he was checking for rust related fault and was saying all was good to him, so is it a case where its at the original tester discretion whether the car has to go on the ramp or not , seems it is since the nct report had been modified after i left somehow .

steph79 · 05-07-2023 9:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811227#Comment_120811227

yes the first report they handed to me on the day , it was written fee 0 €,

all ramps are located at the end of the lanes from what i have seen

selectamatic · 05-07-2023 10:00pm

Where was the rust spot?

standardg60 · 05-07-2023 10:05pm

You should have stood your ground OP, if he handed you a report indicating a visual only then that's what you should have got.

Sounds like the original tester changed the report he gave you without informing you

greasepalm · 05-07-2023 10:08pm

Agree a visual test with no fee is you grab a tester outside.

steph79 · 05-07-2023 10:12pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811273#Comment_120811273

It was above subframe nearside and offside , , actually more visible from standing at front of the car looking inside engine or with the wheels turned a certain way than being underneath car , thats why mechanic missed it at first as he put the car on a ramp and looked from underneath

mk7r · 05-07-2023 10:14pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811316#Comment_120811316

There is no way that wouldn't have been a paid retest, original mechanic definitely messed up

steph79 · 05-07-2023 10:16pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811294#Comment_120811294

yes thats exactly what i think , he changed it without informing me, i could see the guys in the nct centre were mortified that this was happening , i complained a bit but they told me to come back and see with the original tester when he would be on , a lot of nonsense !

selectamatic · 05-07-2023 10:21pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811316#Comment_120811316

Ya as above that would still normally be a paid retest even with it being visible from above with the bonnet open.

In general your car would have went back through the lanes, they might check the repair from above but they'd still normally put it up on the lift too.

The original tester clearly made a mistake in putting you down as a free retest.

steph79 · 05-07-2023 10:45pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811349#Comment_120811349

I appreciate this and have no problem with this but would it not be common courtesy that they would admit their wrong and offer a free "paid" retest at the very least ? , after wasting my time , messing the first report and even were going to print cert ....

Its not about the money but more about principle , i understand we all make mistake , but how much money are they pulling out of us motorists .....millions i would say

selectamatic · 06-07-2023 12:01am

Applus wouldn't be renowned for their common courtesy. And in the end it was clearly just a case of human error.

It's not like you were charged wrongly. You nearly got a free retest when it should have been a paid one but they copped it right at the end.

Shur look ya can try and see will they offer ya anything by getting onto customer care. But I'd not hold out much hope. Still you've nothing to lose by trying.

steph79 · 06-07-2023 8:00am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811562#Comment_120811562

Yes a complaint will absolutely be lodged , I may not have been charged wrongly but a lot of my time was wasted , they made a fool out of me , a new report was created after I left without my knowledge ( with a new booking I’d i may add) I originally had to wait 5 months for the test itself also , all in all a very bad experience and if you re given a visual retest form , they should of honoured that .

selectamatic , I have a feeling you work for the nct or something, you have had no empathy,

only saying ah not too bad , you aren’t out of money , it’s not just about money I was complaining but more about the chaotic experience.

LIGHTNING · 06-07-2023 10:08am

From my experience with a complaint is that it wont go anywhere. I had a failure for a CV boot and I asked for clarification and the NCT guy came out turned the steering wheel and pointed to the tear. But when I got it replaced they insisted it went on the ramp. When I said that I was shown it visually and before so surely it can be done again like that I was told nope.

mk7r · 06-07-2023 1:41pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120812440#Comment_120812440

Thats because in order to replace a cv boot properly you need to disassemble the suspension etc so they need to recheck the alignment and also check for play/loose bolts on the ramp

LIGHTNING · 06-07-2023 7:44pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120813466#Comment_120813466

Well I watched them "retest" it and they didn't do a single test on the car apart from put it up on the ramp look at it drop the car and send it on.

L1011 · 06-07-2023 7:49pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120813466#Comment_120813466

I also had the exact same experience as LIGHTNING - that the boot was changed was checked on the ramp and nothing else. Car was through the lane in about 90 seconds. This was after midnight in the most-people-here-are-taxi-driver slots, but not on a taxi.

mk7r · 06-07-2023 8:04pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120815329#Comment_120815329

They are "supposed to" and it does make sense in fairness but there is no accounting for laziness

elperello · 06-07-2023 8:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811424#Comment_120811424

The system doesn't allow them to make good a human error on the hoof.

Once they discovered the mistake they had to go back and do it by the book.

No harm though in lodging a complaint but I doubt you will get much satisfaction.

hoodie6029 · 06-07-2023 8:39pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811316#Comment_120811316

That’s a location that would have to be tested on a ramp according to the manual to would incur a retest fee.

If you have a copy of the original report that says ‘€0’ then this may have been a system error. When you brought back your car the system updated and sought the fee. Workers in the centre have no power over this system.

If it was a software bug the caused the ‘€0’ to appear and you can prove it with the original report I’d be hopeful that they’d refund you the fee seeing as it was their error.

steph79 · 06-07-2023 10:35pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120815589#Comment_120815589

I don't believe it was a system error at all , as even though all details were the same on the 2 reports , the actual start time of the test was changed , i think the original test had started at 14.45 and it showed that on first report ,second report i got after i went for the visual showed 15.25 , i had already left the center at that time , also the test booking i.d had been changed so someone went into the computer to change something with the fee too ,

I get it that the car was to be put up on the ramp but... , how come when i went for the visual , nobody there was surprised when i showed the report , they said yes that s a visual , seat in the car and a guy will come out , next thing , not one but two guys came out to check car , and none of them mentioned the car should have gone up on the ramp at all , one of them looked under the car with a torch and said yes its fine to me , meet at the window i'll print your cert , next thing i knew is that the report i handed to them , the one i was given on test day was no longer valid since another report had somehow been created requesting full retest with fee , that's the reason the cert couldnt be printed ,

so regardless of who or what made mistake , its a mistake on their side ,

Anyway its fine i'll be booking retest now , what else can i do ....

I sent them an email to make them aware of the confusion , we 'll see if they have the decency to reply.

hoodie6029 · 07-07-2023 7:58am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816054#Comment_120816054

Do you still have the test report that says €0 retest fee?

steph79 · 07-07-2023 8:27am

Yes

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816663#Comment_120816663

yes I still have it . It was given back to me along with the other one !

hoodie6029 · 07-07-2023 8:31am

Great, I’d send a scan of it in with your complaint and hopefully you get a refund.

User1998 · 07-07-2023 9:00am

Just because they made an administrative error doesn’t mean they have to honour the free re test. By all means complain to them but your not exactly entitled to a refund

steph79 · 07-07-2023 9:26am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816902#Comment_120816902

So it’s okay if they waste peoples time with administrative errors , I wasted 2 hours of my time driving there and back when attending visual retest , also petrol money for it , unofficially passed that visual and back to square one with no cert …

But yeah you’re right , they of course don’t have to honour a free retest or be accountable for any of their mistakes .

I you find this is fair treatment to customers then FairPlay to you.😕

Quin_Dub · 07-07-2023 9:32am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120811349#Comment_120811349

Agreed - Any time you need to bring it inside it's a paid test.

It's a free retest for stuff like wipers and bulbs etc. that they can just look at without touching anything.

But if they have to put it on a ramp or open the bonnet , it's a paid test.

hoodie6029 · 07-07-2023 9:40am

And if you’ve a piece of paper from the NCTS saying your retest is free and when you visit the centre it is no longer free, the onus is on them to adequately explain why. Good customer service/avoiding adverse publicity would normally be to waive the fee/issue a refund.

standardg60 · 07-07-2023 11:54am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816054#Comment_120816054

That's interesting, so it seems that while the tester couldn't change the original report, they were able to create a second ghost test after you'd left and were able to add the retest fee.

I'd definitely be inquiring about this as you have both reports showing the discrepancy. It was wrong to waste your time and I would hope they would at least waive the fee.

User1998 · 07-07-2023 12:15pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817060#Comment_120817060

When did I say it was fair?

I’m not saying you don’t deserve to be compensated, all I’m saying is your not entitled to it, so don’t get your hopes up of being compensated.

Frustating nct test experience

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