Car Rebuild Scandal Hits the North
Friday, March 9, 2012 @ 5:55 PM
EXCLUSIVE
Prince George, B.C.- The Ministry of Transportation is quietly re examining the approval stickers on a number of vehicles that have been repaired in Prince George in the past few years after complaints arose as to how those inspections were conducted.
According to the Ministry of Transportation, the investigation got underway after they were contacted by a local auto body shop which expressed concerns about the quality of the workmanship of another autobody facility in the Prince George area.
Although the Ministry says just 15 vehicles were involved, sources tell Opinion 250 the number of suspect vehicles could be as high as 400.
In response to the concerns, the Ministry says it contacted the owners of 15 rebuilt vehicles and performed preliminary inspections. These specific vehicles were selected as they had received the most damage prior to being written off by the insurer.
Nine were sent for further inspection by a trade auto body technician.
Of these, six were identified as having structural issues following their rebuild.
All the owners of vehicles the Ministry is concerned about have been contacted.
Damaged vehicles fall into two categories, those that can be re built, referred to as “Salvage” or those that are referred to as “Dismantle”. In the case of “salvage” they can be re built under these conditions: A certified body specialist must determine that the structure is sound enough to be re built. If they approve the vehicle it is then repaired and taken to an accredited inspection station where a final check is made of the various requirements.
It is in the latter case where inspection agencies in Prince George say they have been warned that they are responsible for vehicles that, while approved, do not meet safety standards.
In one case, at least ten vehicles have come under the Ministry of Transport scrutiny. Two inspection agencies in Prince George have been the target of scrutiny over the matter.
Most of the vehicles that are being re examined originate with one Prince George body shop. In many cases this body shop has purchased salvage vehicles and then re sold them to other buyers.
Investigations are also being conducted into at least one used car dealership that it is alleged to have tampered with the VIN numbers or failed to inform the customer that the vehicle had previously been involved in an accident.
Newer vehicles no longer have the old traditional frame on which the vehicle sits. That is now built into the door panels which makes the inspection for safety very difficult say certified inspectors. In any event they argue that the
body shop is responsible for saying whether the vehicle is road worthy or not. The Ministry of Transportation notes that since 1996, a Structural Integrity Assessment Report (MV3201) has been required to be completed at a collision repair facility and endorsed by a trade qualified auto body technician.
One Vanderhoof resident had his three quarter ton truck seized by police recently; it was subsequently returned to him by a tow truck operator. Whether the truck has failed the inspection is not known.
The Ministry of Transportation says anyone who recently purchased a rebuilt vehicle in the Prince George region and who may have concerns about the vehicle can stop by a Commercial Vehicle Safety Enforcement inspection station for a preliminary inspection or, they may want to have their vehicle checked out by a trade authorized autobody technician.
Comments
I’m pretty sure that CVSE had help from other agencies as well, I saw CVSE with RCMP around town checking cars with 2 officers lately. ICBC is probably helping out too I would think, they are selling the salvage vehicles to the rebuilders. Good job letting people know that they may have an unsafe vehicle, some of the unrepaired stuff is very hard to find. It shows up when its too late to fix it. I sure hope whoever is selling this junk is reading this and stops what they are doing, your children or mine could be riding in one of these vehicles.
Come on….name some names….
I’ve had some work done on one of my cars recently. It would be nice to know which company is running this scam in PG…
I would hope that when a court date is announced, it will be published and we will be able to find out who is responsible. To ensure public safety, the people and business involved should have been mentioned.
If you have concerns about your car be aware that if you bring the cops or CVSE into it you might lose the use of the vehicle, with little chance of compensation (theough the courts). Worse yet, should your VIN look funny…
So what caranmacil is saying is, it’s best to not say anything and put others in danger from your possibly unsafe vehicle and allow the scumbags doing the fly by night work to get away with it, because you could lose your vehicle.
carinmacil indirectly and roundaboutly saying that ” a policeman is not your friend”? Correct me if I am wrong.
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