There is no need to increase fees for the National Car Test (NCT), the driving test or other vehicle-related tests, Minister of State at the Department of Transport Jack Chambers has said, because the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has "significant reserves".
Mr Chambers was responding to an RTÉ News report that the RSA has asked the Government to allow it to raise the charges, or grant it additional money from Exchequer resources.
According to documents released to RTÉ's This Week under the Freedom of Information Act, the RSA, which has a budget of more than €90m annually, appealed directly to Taoiseach Simon Harris to allow it to increase fees from next year.
The authority said its funding model is "not sustainable into the future without appropriate intervention" as charges have not been risen in 12 years.
However, Minister Chambers said the RSA has "significant reserves" and the Government allocated an additional €6.5m for advertising campaigns last year and this year.
He said there is no need to increase fees for motorists and the Government "has to balance any ask for increased fees against the need to maintain affordability for public services".
Mr Chambers said the RSA is a well-funded organisation and that with a cost already for the citizen, a hike is not warrented.
There is "intensive engagement" with the RSA, he added, on two important ministerial priorities - to review the driving test curriculum and to address issues in relation to multiple learner permits.
Among the fees the RSA wants to increase are charges for the NCT, the issuing of driving licences, and commercial vehicle testing. It also wants to increase the fees for driving tests.
It is understood that one of the options it proposed to the Department of Transport is a 10% rise.
This would bring the NCT charge up by €5.50 to €60.50.
For driving tests the fee would increase by €8.50 to €93.50.
Other scenarios examined lower increases.
The RSA has a budget of around €95m financed through fees charged to drivers for the services it provides.
In a briefing document sent to Mr Harris’s special advisor prior to a meeting with him in April, the RSA said there was significant pressure on its self-financing model.
It said that, in 2023, RSA revenue was €7m lower on account of "absorbing the impact of indexation".
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This is projected to decline further by €16.8m in 2024 based on a full-year impact across the organisation's outsourced services.
It is understood the RSA has had to pay wage increases, rent rises and make provision to pay contractors extra due to higher inflation.
In the briefing document it pointed out that fees have not been increased for 12 years.
In a direct appeal to Mr Harris, the RSA outlined its "funding ask."
It said the current funding model is "not sustainable into the future without appropriate intervention".
The RSA said it has had to defer work on two ministerial priorities: A review of the granting of multiple learner permits, and a review of the driving test curriculum due to "a lack of resourcing".
"Both are large multi-annual programmes requiring committed funding and sanctioned headcount to deliver. Is there an option to ring-fence funding and resourcing for these priorities?" it asked.
The RSA pointed out that other public services including daa, the operator of Dublin and Cork airports, and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) have been able to raise their fees, saying TII has increased toll charges three times in 18 months.
"Can the RSA increase fees for its services in line with inflation which have not been increased in 12 years?" it wrote.
It urged the Government to allocate money directly from the Exchequer if fee increases were not sanctioned.
"Should fee increases not be an option for 2025 onwards, can exchequer allocation, in line with the impact of indexation be reconsidered to run existing services as was previously requested?" the document stated.
After the document was sent to Mr Harris the RSA met the Taoiseach.
Following the meeting the authority agreed to continue to progress the review of the driving test curriculum.
It was also agreed that the Department of Transport would continue to ensure ongoing funding.
The RSA subsequently said it has recommenced work on a review into the issuing of multiple learner permits, with an expectation that additional funding for the projects will be provided subject to an assessment being undertaken by external consultants Indecon.
The authority's key responsibility is to promote road safety.
Read more: Rising road deaths: Why is Ireland bucking the European trend?
So far 81 people have died on Irish roads this year. That is a 9% increase on the same period last year which was the worst year on Irish roads for a decade.
In a statement, the Department of Transport said fee increases are "not currently" being considered.
It said the appropriate funding model for the RSA, including the role for exchequer subvention, is part of an ongoing review.
The department added that Minister of State Jack Chambers will bring preliminary recommendations from the review to Government before the summer recess.
The statement added that staffing increases being sought by the RSA must be agreed with the Department of Expenditure as part of the annual budgetary process.
"This process is currently ongoing," it said.
The RSA said it is working across its education programmes, awareness activities, research programmes and its delivery of key services to save lives and prevent serious injuries.
Additional reporting Justin McCarthy
