Filenews 3 February 2025 - by Angelos Nicolaou
At a press conference to be held today at noon by the Minister of Transport Alexis Vafeadis in relation to the vehicle recall decrees, he is expected to clarify the scene for the controversial case of recalls, which concerns the safety and health of tens of thousands of citizens. The decrees provided for in the Law amending the Vehicle Type Approval Laws have passed legislative technical control.
According to the Law, which is in force in parallel with European Regulation 2018/858, the decrees attempt to properly manage the vehicle recall process and the process of restoring the chain of information to owners about existing and future recalls.
The Law concerns all recalls, not only those for TAKATA airbags that concern public opinion, and the management of each case, depending on the degree of risk, is left to the decrees of the Minister. Other European Union countries are given a reasonable time to implement withdrawals, with the right of the competent authority to reduce it when it considers that the potential risk requires its completion in a shorter period of time. This covers all cases, from dangerous to harmless, without inconvenience to citizens, except where necessary.
In Cyprus, according to information provided by Fileleftheros, out of approximately 82,000 vehicles recalled, the information on the last 20,000 was given to the competent Department (Department of Road Transport-TOM) only last Thursday and owners will be informed by SMS, probably within the day. This unjustified delay came from distributors who were late in getting the information and from the KIOS Centre of Excellence for Research and Innovation of the University of Cyprus. KIOS significantly helped TFT extract data from an authoritative website in New Zealand.
The legislative regulation of recalls of "grey" vehicles, i.e. those that were not manufactured to European standards, has evolved into a complex and complex legal issue, which concerns not only European regulations and national legislation but also recent rulings of the European Court of Justice. The decrees should be issued within this legal framework and take into account the complexity of what is described as a major brain teaser.
Sources within the Department of Transport have expressed great appreciation for the continued support they receive from the Legal Service during this effort, not only for the continuous provision of legal advice but also for the assistance with expertise from various departments. Although the original intention was to issue the decrees well before today, it was nevertheless important to prepare the texts properly in order to avoid legal adventures in the future.
What the decrees provide – Immobilization of 276 vehicles
The whole problem with TAKATA airbags arose due to the age of the vehicles equipped with them and the increased risk of the airbag exploding during its activation, promoting sharp objects that can cause serious injury or even death. And that was not enough, it seems that another serious issue now arises with problems in the brake systems of certain vehicles, which may not work properly and sharply increase the risk of collision. If there are cases where both risks apply to a car, their combination is, unfortunately, fatal.
According to Fileleftheros' reliable information, the decrees are expected to force a large number of drivers (276) to immobilize their vehicles, with all that this entails. This will be done for those cars that were informed by the manufacturers with the indication DO NOT DRIVE and will be implemented by temporarily suspending the registration of vehicles by the TFT.
The standstill will concern 138 vehicles with problematic airbags and 138 vehicles with faulty brakes. The vehicles come from a total of three manufacturers. The relevant information to the owners will be provided by both the importer-distributor of the vehicles in Cyprus and the TFT.
