European Parliament vote Dalton report

The European Parliament has adopted the Compromise Package on the Vehicle Type-Approval Framework Regulation during the Plenary session held in Strasbourg.

Prior to the vote, Rapporteur Dalton (ECR/UK) said that this legislation was a strong EU wide response to the Dieselgate scandal and will make cars safer and cleaner, ensuring at the same time that a Diesel scandal can’t happen again.

In addition, he said, ‘Consumers also rely on an independent and healthy aftermarket for local and good quality services. This has been a key issue for me as lead negotiator. I am pleased to have achieved improved access to manufacturers’ information for independent repairers. This makes the market stronger for the benefit of consumers’.

The text adopted includes clarifications on access to Repair and Maintenance Information (RMI). For example, the continued possibility to communicate with the vehicle’s technical information/data via the standardised on-board diagnostic connector, when the vehicle is stationary and in motion.

The new EU regulation aims to create more rigorous checks on the automotive sectors with stricter requirements for emission tests and heavy fines for cheating companies.

MEPs voted in favour of rules reinforcing the procedures for the type-approval of motor vehicles and enabling the European Commission to check the work of EU countries regarding this and impose sanctions on manufacturers breaking the rules. It is an update of the existing directive from 2007, making the testing and approval of new cars more transparent.

Every new vehicle must have a certificate of conformity to an approved type before it can be sold in the EU. This is why new types of vehicles are tested by national authorities on about 70 different criteria, ranging from safety to emissions.

The new rules will improve the transparency of the procedures, making it easier to monitor them and impose penalties if they are not being followed correctly. For example, to ensure testing centres are independent, EU countries will collect testing fees from manufacturers so that they are not in touch with the centres.