Proposal for a DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Council Directive 1999/37/EC on the registration documents for vehicles
Date: 2012-07-13
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: commercial vehicle, data recording, exchange of information, motor vehicle, road safety, roadworthiness tests, technical standard, vehicle documents, vehicle registration

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 13.7.2012  
COM(2012) 381 final 

2012/0185 (COD) 

Roadworthiness Package 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Council Directive 1999/37/EC on the registration documents for vehicles  

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

• 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Grounds for and objectives of the proposal 

The  objective  of  the  'Roadworthiness  Package'  is  to  support  and  to  enforce  roadworthiness 
testing  of  motor  vehicles  and  their  trailers  with  a  view  to  enhance  road  safety  and 
environmental protection.  

The proposal aims at contributing to reach the target of a reduction of road fatalities by the 
half until 2020 as laid down in the Policy Orientations on Road Safety 2011-20201. It will also 
contribute  to  the  reduction  of  emissions  in  road  transport  linked  to  poor  maintenance  of 
vehicles. 

In this context the proposal aims at improving the enforcement of the roadworthiness testing 
and roadside inspection regime, notably in the case where the technical condition of a vehicle 
creates  an  imminent  risk  to  road  safety,  through  measures  such  as  temporary  withdrawal  or 
permanent cancellation of the vehicle's registration. 

• 

General context 

Before  a  vehicle  is  allowed  to  be  put  on  the  market,  it  has  to  fulfil  all  the  relevant  type  or 
individual approval requirements guaranteeing an optimal level of safety and environmental 
standards. Every Member State has the obligation to register for the first time any vehicle that 
received the European type-approval on the basis of the “Certificate of Conformity” issued by 
the vehicle manufacturer. This registration is the official authorisation for the use on public 
roads and enforces the different introduction dates of different vehicles' requirements.  

Following  this  approval,  cars  on  the  road  have  to  be  regularly  submitted  to  periodic 
roadworthiness  tests.  The  aim  of  these  tests  is  to  ensure  that  cars  on  the  road  remain 
roadworthy,  safe  and  do  not  pose  any  danger  to  the  driver  and  other  road  users.  Cars  are 
therefore  checked  for  compliance  with  certain  requirements,  such  as  those  for  safety  and 
environmental protection, as well as for retrofitting requirements. Because of their regular and 
intensive use mainly for commercial purposes, vehicles used for the professional transport of 
goods with a laden mass above 3.5 tonnes and for the professional transport of passengers of 
more  than  8  passengers  are  additionally  subject  to  ad  hoc  technical  roadside  inspections  by 
which their compliance with environmental and technical requirements is verified at anytime 
and anywhere in the EU. 

During a vehicle's lifetime it may be subject to re-registration, due to a change of ownership, 
or a transfer to another Member State for permanent use. Provisions on a vehicle registration 
procedure  should  be  similarly  introduced  to  ensure  that  vehicles  which  constitute  an 
immediate risk to road safety are not used on roads.  

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COM(2010)389 final. 

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The goal of vehicle registration is to authorise the entry into service – the use – of a vehicle in 
road  traffic.  This  authorisation  is  rendered  visible  by  the  attachment  of  the  registration 
number plate to the vehicle and the issuing of a registration certificate.  

• 

Existing provisions in the area of the proposal 

The  proposal  will  amend  the  existing  requirements  laid  down  in  the  existing  legislative 
framework related to the registration documents for vehicles2. 

Compared to the existing act, the proposal provides for more precise definitions on the place 
of registration of vehicles, withdrawal and cancellation of registrations. The proposal also lays 
down  new  requirements  on  electronic  vehicle  registration  registers  and  the  follow  up  of 
notifications related to roadworthiness test results, re-registration and destruction of vehicles.  

• 

Consistency with the other policies and objectives of the Union 

The proposal is consistent with the EU objective to make roads safer as outlined in the White 
Paper on Transport3 and aims at implementing the specific strategy related to safer vehicles 
within the Road Safety Orientations 2011-2020. 

Finally,  the  proposal  is  consistent  with  the  recommendations  related  to  the  re-launch  of  the 
Single Market policy as provided by the Monti Report of May 20104 in the field of reduction 
of administrative obstacles for cross-border movement of second hand cars. 

2. 

• 

RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND 
IMPACT ASSESSMENTS 

Consultation of interested parties 

Consultation methods 

In  developing  the  proposal  of  the  roadworthiness  package  the  Commission  has  consulted 
stakeholders in a number of ways: 

– 

– 

– 

There was a general internet consultation, covering all aspects of the proposal 

Experts and stakeholders have been consulted within workshops 

A study on future options for roadworthiness enforcement in the European Union has 
been carried out to identify possible measures and to elaborate a cost benefit analysis 
tool related to the effects of roadworthiness testing 

Summary of responses and how they have been taken into account 

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Council Directive 1999/37/EC of 29 April 1999 on the registration documents for vehicles, as amended. 
COM(2011)144 final. 
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/strategy/docs/monti_report_final_10_05_2010_en.pdf. 

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During  the  internet  consultation,  several  issues  were  raised  by  stakeholders.  The  impact 
assessment  that  accompanies  this  proposal  provides  a  full  account  of  the  substantive  issues 
raised and discusses how they have been taken into consideration. 

An  open  consultation  was  conducted  over  the  internet  from  29/7/2010  to  24/9/2010.The 
Commission  received  9,653  responses  from  citizens,  Member  State  authorities,  equipment 
suppliers, test centres, garage associations and vehicle manufacturers.  

results  are  available  on  http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/take-part/public-

The 
consultations/pti_en.htm. 

• 

Collection and use of expertise 

Scientific/expertise domains concerned 

The  proposal  required  the  assessment  of  different  policy  options  as  well  as  the  associated 
economic, societal and environmental impacts. 

Methodology used 

A  study  on  the  impacts  of  the  different  policy  options  has  been  performed  by  an  external 
consultant  (Europe  Economics)  using  several  scientific  and  evaluation  reports,  notably  as 
sources  of  models  and  data  for  the  monetization  of  the  costs  and  benefits  of  the  different 
policy options. Most extensively used studies include the following: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

The Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the 
application  by  the  Member  States  of  Directive 2000/30/EC  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council of 6 June 2000 on the technical roadside inspections of 
the roadworthiness of commercial vehicles circulating in the community - Reporting 
periods 2005–2006 and 2007–2008 (COM(2010) 754 final, 

AUTOFORE (2007) 

"MOT Scheme Evidence-base" Department of Transport (UK, 2008),  

DEKRA Road Safety Report 2008 – Strategies for preventing accidents on Europe's 
roads,  

DEKRA Road Safety Report on Trucks 2009,  

DEKRA Motorcycle road safety report 2010,  

TÜV Reports 2009 / 2010. 

Means used to make the expert advice publicly available 

All completed and approved research reports are or will be available on the DG Mobility and 
Transport website 

• 

Impact assessment 

For the main aspects of the proposal the following options were considered: 

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(a) 

(b) 

The  'No  policy  change'  approach  provides  the  reference  case  against  which  the 
effects of other policy options are compared. Within this option, the present EU legal 
framework for would be maintained. Also, there would be no short-term adaptation 
of  the  technical  annex  of  Directive  2009/40/EC,  since  the  annex  has  been  recently 
amended through comitology (with Directive 2010/48/EU). The scope and frequency 
of roadworthiness tests will therefore not change, and no further measures related to 
the  exchange  of  information  will  be  adopted.  The  absence  of  a  framework  for 
exchanging data will persist. 

The  "Soft  law  approach"  would  consist  in  a  better  implementation  and  better 
monitoring of the application of existing legislation. This option would not introduce 
new legislation, but there would be new and increased efforts by the Commission to 
improve  the  standards  of  testing  and  enforcement,  as  well  as  actions  to  incentivise 
the exchange of data. 

(c) 

The "Legislative approach" would be based on two components. 

– 

– 

In order to meet the specific objective to enhance the safety of vehicles on the 
road, the first component is to revise upwards the minimum EU standards for 
periodic roadworthiness tests (PTI) and unexpected roadside inspections (RSI) 
and  define  mandatory  standards.  This  is  essential  to  avoid  that  gaps  in  the 
system reduce the effectiveness of roadworthiness enforcement as a whole.  

In  order  to  meet  the  specific  objective  of  making  the  necessary  data  for  and 
from  roadworthiness  testing  available,  a  second  component  of  the  overall 
regime would include, in a second phase, the possible establishment of an EU 
harmonised data exchange system linking the existing databases with a view to 
improve  the  efficiency  of  the  implementation  of  the  EU  roadworthiness 
package. 

3. 

• 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

Summary of the proposed action 

The proposal defines the withdrawal and cancellation of registrations.  

This measure ensures that vehicles which constitute an immediate risk to road safety due to 
dangerous defects are not allowed on the road by withdrawing their registration until another 
roadworthiness test has been passed successfully. To reduce administrative burden, it should 
not be necessary to go through the process of registration when the withdrawal is lifted again.  

Furthermore the proposal introduces a degree of automatism whereby the original registration 
of  vehicles  which  have  been  re-registered  in  another  Member  State  are  automatically 
cancelled.  This  avoids  the  existence  parallel  registrations  per  vehicle  in  different  Member 
States.  The  obligation  to  perform  periodical  roadworthiness  tests  is  linked  to  the  Member 
State of registration. Therefore the existence of parallel registrations per vehicle in different 
Member States would result in an obligation to undergo roadworthiness tests in these different 
Member States.  

Registrations  of  vehicles  that  following  a  periodic  roadworthiness  test  would  need  to  be 
scrapped and those notified as 'end of life vehicle' shall be cancelled following its notification. 

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The proposal also introduces the establishment of electronic registration registers containing 
all information related to the vehicle registration. This information will be made accessible for 
the  purpose  of  roadworthiness  testing  as  only  a  part  of  this  information  is  printed  on  the 
registration certificates. The register provides for the follow-up to be taken after notification 
of roadworthiness test results, re-registration and destruction of a vehicle. 

The Commission shall be empowered to update the annexes taking into account the evolution 
of the EU type-approval legislation in relation with the content of certificates of conformity as 
well as technical progress via delegated acts. 

• 

Legal basis 

The legal basis of the proposal is Article 91 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European 
Union. 

• 

Subsidiarity principle 

The  subsidiarity  principle  applies  insofar  as  the  proposal  does  not  fall  under  the  exclusive 
competence of the Union. 

The objectives of the proposal cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States for the 
following reason: existing requirements are implemented in different way by Member States 
with a high discrepancy in enforcement of the roadworthiness testing and roadside inspection 
regime  with  negative  impacts  both  on  road  safety  but  also  on  the  internal  market.  A  future 
seamless  flow  of  information  between  Member  States  on  vehicle  registration  requires  the 
existence of registration registers with a harmonised content in all Member States. 

The proposal therefore complies with the subsidiarity principle. 

• 

Proportionality principle 

The proposal complies with the proportionality principle for the following reasons. 

As showed in the impact assessment, the proposal complies with the proportionality principle 
because it does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve the objectives related to 
the  increase  of  road  safety  and  environmental  protection  by  enforcing  a  roadworthiness 
regime and creation of the appropriate framework for seamless flow of information.  

• 

Choice of instrument 

Proposed instruments: Amendment of existing Directive. 

The use of an amendment to the existing Directive is considered to be appropriate. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION  

The proposal has no implication on the Union budget. 

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2012/0185 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Council Directive 1999/37/EC on the registration documents for vehicles  

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 91 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee5,  

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions6,  

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

Roadworthiness testing is a part of a wider regime ensuring that vehicles are kept in a 
safe  and  environmentally  acceptable  condition  during  their  use.  This  regime  should 
cover periodic roadworthiness tests for all vehicles and roadside technical inspection 
for  vehicles  used  for  commercial  road  transport  activities  as  well  as  provisions  on  a 
vehicle  registration  procedure  to  ensure  that  vehicles  which  constitute  an  immediate 
risk to road safety are not used on roads. 

Registration of a vehicle provides for its use on public roads. Directive 1999/37/EC of 
29 April 1999 on the registration documents for vehicles7 only applies to the granting 
of  a  registration  for  vehicles.  Nevertheless,  especially  in  cases  where  the  use  of  the 
vehicle  on  public  roads  would  create  a  risk,  due  to  the  technical  situation  of  the 
vehicle, it should be possible to withdraw the registration for a certain period of time. 
To reduce the administrative burden resulting from a withdrawal of the registration, it 
should not be necessary to go through the process of registration when the withdrawal 
is lifted again. 

5 
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7 

OJ C, p. 
OJ C, p. 
OJ L 138 of 1.6.1999, p.57. 

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(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

The  possibility  of  cancelling  a  registration  of  a  vehicle  in  cases  where  inter  alia  a 
vehicle  has  been  re-registered  in  another  Member  State  or  dismantled  and  scrapped 
should be introduced. 

To  reduce  administrative  burdens  and  ease  the  exchange  of  information  between 
Member States, vehicle related information should be kept in national registers. 

In cases where dangerous deficiencies have been found during a roadworthiness test, 
the registration should be withdrawn by the competent authorities until the vehicle has 
passed a new roadworthiness test. 

In order to supplement this Directive with further technical details, the power to adopt 
acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European 
Union  should  be  delegated  to  the  Commission  with  a  view  to  update  the  annexes, 
taking into account the evolution of the EU type-approval legislation in relation to the 
content  of  certificates  of  conformity  as  well  as  technical  progress.  It  is  of  particular 
importance  that  the  Commission  carry  out  appropriate  consultations  during  its 
preparatory  work,  including  at  expert  level.  The  Commission,  when  preparing  and 
drawing  up  delegated  acts,  should  ensure  simultaneous,  timely  and  appropriate 
transmission of relevant documents to the European Parliament and to the Council. 

In  accordance  with  the  Joint  Political  Declaration  of  Member  States  and  the 
Commission  on  explanatory  documents  of  28  September  2011,  Member  States  have 
undertaken  to  accompany,  in  justified  cases,  the  notification  of  their  transposition 
measures  with  one  of  more  documents  explaining  the  relationship  between  the 
components  of  a  directive  and  the  corresponding  parts  of  national  transposition 
instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of 
such documents to be justified. 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: 

Article 1 

Directive 1999/37/EC is amended as follows: 

1. The provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 1 are replaced by the following : 

"This  Directive  shall  apply  to  the  registration  documents  for  vehicles  used  by  the 
Member States". 

2. The following points are added to Article 2: 

"(e) 'withdrawal of a registration': shall mean a limited period of time in which the 
vehicle is not authorised to be used in road traffic, not involving a new process 
of registration; 

(f) 

'cancellation  of  a  registration':  shall  mean  a  permanent  cancellation  of  the 
authorisation for the vehicle to be used in road traffic, involving a new process 
of registration." 

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3. 

The following paragraph is added to Article 3: 

"4.  Member States shall keep the data on all vehicles registered on their territory in 
an  electronic  register.  The  data  in  this  register  shall  contain  all  elements  in 
accordance  with  Annex  I  as  well  as  the  results  of  mandatory  roadworthiness 
tests  in  accordance  with  Regulation  XX/XX/XX  [on  periodic  roadworthiness 
tests].  They  shall  make  the  technical  data  on  vehicles  available  to  the 
competent authorities or testing centres involved in roadworthiness testing." 

3. 

The following Article is inserted: 

"Article 3a 

1. 

In case that a Member States registration authority receives a notification of a 
roadworthiness test showing that the vehicle has been assessed with dangerous 
deficiencies  in  accordance  with  Article  7  of  Regulation  XX/XX/XX  [on 
periodic  roadworthiness  tests],  the  registration  shall  be  withdrawn  and  an 
additional roadworthiness test shall be carried out.  

The  withdrawal  shall  be  effective  until  the  vehicle  has  passed  a  new 
roadworthiness  test.  On  successful  completion  of  the  roadworthiness  test,  the 
registration authority shall without delay re-authorise the use of the vehicle in 
road traffic.  

2. 

In case that a Member State registration authority receives a notification that a 
vehicle has been treated as an end-of-life vehicle in accordance with Directive 
2000/53/EC8  the  registration  shall  be  cancelled  and  this  information  shall  be 
added to its electronic register." 

4. 

The following paragraph is added to Article 5: 

"3. 

In case that a Member States receives a notification that a vehicle has been re-
registered  in  an  other  Member  State,  it  shall  cancel  the  registration  of  this 
vehicle on its territory." 

5. 

Article 6 and 7 are replaced by the following : 

"Article 6 
Delegated acts 

The  Commission  shall  be  empowered  to  adopt  delegated  acts  in  accordance  with 
Article 7 with a view to adapt the Annexes in the light of technical progress. 

8 

OJ L 269 of 21.10.2000, p. 34. 

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1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

1. 

Article 7 
Exercise of delegation 

The  power  to  adopt  delegated  acts  is  conferred  on  the  Commission  subject  to  the 
conditions laid down in this Article. 

The  delegation  of  power  referred  to  in  Article  6  shall  be  conferred  for  an 
indeterminate period of time from the date of entry into force of this Regulation. 

The delegation of powers referred to in Article 6 may be revoked at any time by the 
European Parliament or by the Council. A revocation decision shall put an end to the 
delegation  of  the  power  specified  in  that  decision.  It  shall  take  effect  the  day 
following  the  publication  of  the  decision  in  the  Official  Journal  of  the  European 
Union  or  at  a  later  date  specified  therein.  It  shall  not  affect  the  validity  of  any 
delegated acts already in force. 

As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to 
the European Parliament and to the Council. 

A  delegated  act  adopted  pursuant  to  Article  6  shall  enter  into  force  only  if  no 
objection  has  been  expressed  by  either  the  European  Parliament  or  the  Council 
within a period of 2 months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and 
the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the 
Council  have  both  informed  the  Commission  that  they  will  not  object.  That  period 
shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or the 
Council." 

Article 2 
Transposition 

Member  States  shall  adopt  and  publish,  by  [XXXX]  at  the  latest,  the  laws, 
regulations  and  administrative  provisions  necessary  to  comply  with  this  Directive. 
They  shall  without  delay  communicate  to  the  Commission  the  text  of  those 
provisions. 

They  shall  apply  those  provisions  [36  months  after  the  entry  into  force  of  this 
Directive]. 

When  Member  States  adopt  those  provisions,  they  shall  contain  a  reference  to  this 
Directive  or  be  accompanied  by  such  a  reference  on  the  occasion  of  their  official 
publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made. 

2. 

Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions 
of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive. 

Article 3 
Entry into force 

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union. 

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Article4 
Addressees 

This Directive is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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