More than one in ten broken down cars assisted by Allianz last year were being driven with expired NCT certificates.
New figures show that of the 7,042 cars which received breakdown assistance from the insurance company in 2016, 97 per cent (6,793) of these had not fully completed an NCT test.
Over one in ten (832) of the broken down cars assisted by Allianz were being driven with expired NCT certificates and 5 per cent of the vehicles had no valid certificate at all.
In terms of which models suffered most breakdowns, Ford was the worst at 14 per cent (999), followed by Toyota and Volkswagen at 10 per cent (733) each, while Toyotas and Volkswagens followed closely behind (716).
Toyotas were the most tested cars with 228,651 vehicles and a 53 per cent pass rate. Volkswagens were next in line with 182,727 vehicles and a 47 per cent pass rate, while Ford was the third most tested brand with 169,493 cars tested and a 46 per cent pass rate.
Last year’s NCT figures also show that car tires were the primary cause of the 51.6 per cent NCT failures; followed by front suspension; brake line/hoses; headlamp aim; and finally stop lamps.
Prior to 2016, front suspension had ranked as the top reason for NCT failures between 2010 and 2015. The reason for this failure is a more than 30 per cent imbalance between left hand and right hand suspension.
Allianz Ireland chief executive Sean McGrath said ensuring cars are in full working order is “vitally important”.
“Defective motor vehicles have a higher risk of breaking down and being involved in accidents,” he said. “Car owners of vehicles over three years old, driving without a valid NCT are breaking the law.
“If these cars are defective, drivers increase the potential risk of being involved in accidents - involving themselves and others and increase the potential for unwelcomed breakdowns.
“Driving without a valid NCT also increases the risk of receiving penalty points, which has the potential to adversely impact insurance premiums.”
