Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore has backed a call by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) for a publicly accessible database to identify damaged or dangerous second-hand vehicles.<\/p>\n
Deputy Whitmore, who is the party\u2019s transport spokesperson, said:<\/p>\n
\u201cIn 2024, the CCPC received 3,192 contacts to its national consumer helpline related to second-hand cars. Of these, hundreds of consumers suspected that the vehicle they had bought was previously crashed \u2013 without the damage being disclosed when they purchased it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile some commercial online car history platforms will provide information for a fee, much of this data is gleaned from the Department of Transport so there is no reason why it should not be publicly available for free.<\/p>\n
\u201cIreland compares badly to other countries, with 20 EU member states, as well as the UK, New Zealand and Australia, offering access to vehicle history information.<\/p>\n
\u201cBuying a car is a significant investment, particularly for young drivers who may be more vulnerable to being misled by unscrupulous traders or private sellers. If we want to reduce carnage on our roads, we must help consumers make informed, educated decisions so they are not unwittingly buying a defective car.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was also concerned to read reports of the NCT passing an unsafe car, which is another road safety issue that needs further scrutiny. Ensuring the roadworthiness of cars is crucial if we want to bring down the unacceptable number of fatalities and serious injuries on Irish roads.\u201d<\/p>\n
February 26, 2025<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore has backed a call by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) for a publicly accessible database to identify damaged or dangerous second-hand vehicles. Deputy Whitmore, who is the party\u2019s transport spokesperson, said: \u201cIn 2024, the CCPC received 3,192 contacts to its national consumer helpline related to second-hand cars. Of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11226,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[268,7,672,547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jennifer-whitmore","category-press-release","category-road-safety","category-transport"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n