The New Zealand Transport Agency has appointed five vehicle inspecting organisations to complete entry certification for used light vehicles in New Zealand following a comprehensive application and evaluation process.

From Monday 1 March, AA, VTNZ, VINZ, Drivesure and Canterbury Vehicle Compliance (CVC) are approved to certify used light vehicles entering the New Zealand fleet according to a wide range of conditions, to make sure they are safe and legal for use on New Zealand roads. 

Once a vehicle meets the requirements for entry, the certifier issues a registration application form and a Warrant of Fitness (WoF) or Certificate of Fitness (CoF).

“This has been a really positive process, as we‘ve raised the bar around the application process for both entry certification and border inspection,” says Sue Hardiman, senior manager vehicle and driver licensing.

“We extended existing appointments through to 28 February 2021 to make sure the appointment process served our regulatory objectives of lifting the standards, professionalism and integrity of the industry.

“We also worked with applicants to ensure the successful applicants are part of a robust model. This collaborative approach allowed us to get a full view of the applicants‘ operations and give us confidence in the quality of the applicants and their ability to carry out their delegated duties on behalf of Waka Kotahi.”

This appointment process follows on from a review of the conflicts of interest policy for vehicle entry certification in 2019, in which the New Zealand Transport Agency committed to a more robust process for audits and reviews of entry certification and border inspection agencies. This is now occurring through a new border inspection and entry certification compliance team that was created last year. 

The New Zealand Transport Agency is making good progress on the appointment process for the border inspection sector and expects to have new appointments in place by July.