HL Deb 16 February 1978 vol 388 cc1538-9WA
Lord LUCAS of CHILWORTH

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many motor cars in the 12-month period ending 31st December 1977:

  1. (a) were offered for test under the provisions of the Motor Vehicle (Test) Regulations 1976;
  2. (b) failed this test as shown in the Motor Vehicle Test Registers as tabulated in the summary of the inspection sheets VT 29 and the reasons for failure as shown in that summary;
  3. (c) were passed and issued with certificate VT 20;
  4. (d) failed and were issued with certificate VT 21;
  5. (e) failed and were issued with certificate VT 22;
  6. (f) were offered for re-test; and what were the comparable figures for the preceding year.

Baroness STEDMAN

I regret that the information is not available in the precise form required. The following are the details for the nine-month period 1st January 1977 to 30th September 1977 and the corresponding period for 1976:

1st January-30th September 1977 1st January-30th September 1976
Number of Passenger Car Tests (including re-tests, which are not separately identified) 10,418,600 10,220,950
Number of Passes (VT 20) 6,698,300 6,896,250
Number of Failures (VT 21 and 22) 3,720,300 3,324,700
Principal reasons for failure:
(a) Brakes 2,070,150 2,039,000
(b) Steering 1,701,250 1,730,300
(c) Lighting 1,091,060 718,300
(d) Tyres 612,150 623,600
(e) Seat belts 112,800 39,500
(f) Other Defects (Other items included in the test as from 1st January 1977) 1,384,100 —