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The mid-morning current affairs magazine with the stories of the day, sharp analysis, in-depth features and consumer interest
As the hunt continues for the gang who murdered Garda Adrian Donohoe it’s emerged that Uzi sub machine guns used by detectives on escort duty were withdrawn from service last march.
It’s been claimed that the machine gun acted as a major deterrent to criminals targeting cash in transit.
As we progress further into 2013 the property tax and how homes are going to be valued will be of interest to many of us. So far there is much we don’t know apart from the fact that with the revenue commissioners charged with collecting the tax there won’t be much scope for non payment.
Joining Pat to tease out what the property tax will mean for all of us, how it will be collected
and on how the valuations process will work, Ed Carey – chair of the Residential Property Group of the Society of Chartered Surveyors of Ireland and back with us again, Brian Keegan, Director of Taxation with Chartered Accountants Ireland.
Earlier this month, Ulster Bank confirmed that 22 branches and suboffices it will close throughout Ireland. They are not the only ones to close their branches as, in an effort to curb costs and to move in the direction of online or automated banking, banks, like many other businesses, are restructuring to meet the new market reality. However, banks are not just any business. Branches are a necessity to many people who do not have access to the internet or simply require face to face contact with their branch. Older people have particular requirements that an automated service simply cannot provide and, a branches close down or as they are encouraged by the staff in branch to use ATMs instead of the cashier, many have difficulty meeting their banking needs.
So, what is the future of banking services in Ireland? Pat was joined by Eamon Timmins of Age Action and by Felix O’Regan of the Irish Banking Federation, but first Paddy O’Gorman spoke with some OAPs in Rathfarnham in Dublin, who had just been in to a bank, to talk about the move away from personalised to machine-based interaction with their bank.
Most Irish families have a connection to the missionaries at one time or another but now the numbers are now on the decline.
Lifers is a new documentary from award-winning filmmaker Ruan Magan that examines the true story of three members of probably the last generation of Irish missionaries.
The one-hour film features Fr John Glynn, who runs the We Care Foundation in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, and Sr Pat Murray, a Loreto sister in charge of Solidarity with South Sudan and they both joined Pat on the line , with Ruan Magan here in studio.
The Old Crow Medicine Show, based out of Nashville, Tenn., has been rocking the old-time, folk, stringed band genre for over 14 years, but really caught their break nationally when they released their hit-single, “Wagon Wheel,” in 2004.
Old Crow Medicine Show got its' start busking on street corners in New York state and up through Canada, winning audiences along the way with their boundless energy and spirit. Well they play Vicar Street tonight and it promises to be a great night and to give you a taste we had the boys over in Studio 8.
NCT tests
Last year the number of vehicles put through the NCT test breached the one million threshold, but just over 48% of them passed.
At a cost of €55 and €22 for some retests, plus any servicing or repair costs that may be required, it can be a big financial outlay.
So, are more cars failing the test now or have those numbers been consistent over the years? What are the main reasons for failing the test and what should you look out for if you need to get your car serviced.
Tina Leonard has been looking into it.
The NCT
National car testing began here in 2000 for cars of four years or older and the test was required every two years. Since the start of 2011 cars more than ten years old must be tested annually.
It costs €55 and if you cancel less than five days in advance or don’t show at all, you’ll be charged an extra €22 when you do turn up. It costs €28 for a re-test, although visual re-tests, those not requiring the use of equipment, are free of charge.
As a matter of interest the charge is higher in the UK at GB£54.85 or €63.83.
In 2010 ACTS (Applus Car Testing Service Ltd) took over the running of the tests. In 2011 their turnover increase to €49.9mill from €43.2mill in 2010, with their profit before tax increasing to €2.7mill from just under €1mill. (Bear in mind that the number of cars tested went over 1 million for the first time in 2011, and had already increased by more than 100,000 in 2011, no doubt due to the annual testing requirement for cars over ten years old).
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In the Road Safety Authority’s (RSA) most recent annual review of national car testing, which reviews 2011, they report an 85% satisfaction rate from surveyed customers and the level of complaints received as being only 0.07% of total inspections.
In addition to carrying out operational and process audits they carried out 1,564 observational audits of testing while it was taking place and scored 9.61 out of 10 over all. However, from these inspections 3.2% of inspectors were rated ‘poor’ or ‘unacceptable’ and this was due mainly to failure to notice fails. It is interesting that these poor ratings were largely due to not noticing fails, rather than too much failing, and shows the rigour of the tests imposed.
How many of our cars fail and is there consistency across the country and across the years?
In fact looking at stats back over the years the pass and fail rates have remained consistent within a small margin and the ratio is almost 50/50 between the two.
For example for texts in 2012 the overall pass rate was 48.3% and the fail rate 51.3% (the minor remaining were deemed a ‘dangerous’ fail). While in 2011 the pass rate was 50.6% and the fail rate 49% and in 2010 the pass rate was 51.7% and the fail rate 47.8%.
The rates above are for all car ages but the pass rates for newer cars as a rule are higher each year i.e. 73% for 09 reg vehicles in 2011 and 63% for 06 reg vehicles.
Looking across the 46 test centres nationwide the pass and test fails are still within around 15% of the average national figures. As a matter of interest, the highest pass rate in 2011 was recorded at the Charleville test centre (63.5%) and the highest fail rate was recorded in Clifden at 59.3%.
So, within a few percentage points, the national rates for passing and failing have remained consistent, although last year was the first where the pass rate fell just below 50%.
What are the main reasons that the cars fail?
The main reasons for failure in 2012 (in order of fail rate) were: 1. Front suspension. 2. Tyre condition. 3. Headlamp aim. 4. Brake line / hoses. 5. Stop lamps. These are the top five that figure consistently through the years as the main fail reasons, with front suspension consistently featuring as the top problem.
Knowing these are the problems, do people get a service before the test or use the test for diagnostic purposes?
Anecdotally we know that many people use the NCT for diagnostic purposes and then go to the garage with a list of items they need repaired before their retest.
However, the advice from a safety perspective is always to stick with your car servicing schedule and to keep on top of maintenance checks irrespective of when the next NCT test is due.
Plus, it is a false economy to put off checks and services which may uncover minor work needed, as more serious work required later could end up costing you a lot more. Mind you if you don’t have the spare cash this week or this month for servicing, that may be easier said than done.
Most likely it is for these economic reasons that many are not keeping up with their servicing schedule. For example, in a recent AA survey of over 15,000 people, 54% regularly spotted broken tail lights; 51% regularly spotted broken head lamps; and 42% regularly spotted visibly damaged vehicles.
This could have contributed to the minor fall in pass rates at the NCT since 2010.
What to look out for when getting your car serviced.
The cost of a service can be from €85 to €200, depending of course on the type of service and what exactly you are getting so the key thing is to ask exactly what you are getting?
Bear in mind that if you’re going for a pre-NCT test (you can get one for as little as €40), no garage in Ireland can guarantee this will ensure you pass the NCT test. So, you still may fail and have to pay for further service. It’s a gamble though, and the choice is yours.
An independent garage can provide exactly the same mechanical expertise as a branded garage but is usually cheaper for servicing. But, make sure you know and trust the garage and always get a receipt so you have proof of purchase.
If you need specific work done, make sure you are clear about what you are getting and that the garage doesn’t carry out any repairs not originally discussed without your further agreement.
If you need to buy parts for your car, remember that generic parts (Original Equipment Manufacture/OEM parts) are the same parts but cheaper than the branded versions.
If you need to be make a complaint, do so to the garage first. If that doesn’t resolve things you may have recourse to the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) complaints service (for SIMI members) and you can use the small claims system for claims up to €2,000. There is also a complaints process for the NCT service.
