The Council of Ministers adopted a proposal to appoint a three-member investigative committee to examine issues not covered by the administrative investigation already conducted into the defective Takata airbags.
As stated by the Minister of Transport, Communications and Works Alexis Vafeadis after the Cabinet meeting, the Legal Service's recommendation to appoint a three-member committee was essentially adopted and following this development, the Minister will proceed to determine the terms of reference and will return next Wednesday with a recommendation for the names that will make up the committee.
Regarding the issue of distributors' charges for some services they offer in relation to the recall and replacement of airbags, the Minister stated that after investigations, it became apparent that there is no legislation that allows them to issue a decree limiting the charging of administrative costs or any other costs that are not included in the recall and the handling of the recall by distributors.
"And for this reason we will not issue a decree and we urge and call on distributors to avoid charges. This issue is serious for the government, distributors must participate in this effort of the general recall of all these vehicles and not burden citizens with this additional cost," said Mr. Vafeadis.
Asked about the new airbag explosion, the Minister said the incident took place last October and not more recently but stressed, that is not important. “What is important is that we have an incident which is yet another incident with a defective Takata airbag,” he said.
Mr. Vafeadis emphasized that we have 80.000 cars on the roads with a component that is potentially dangerous, "which is why we reiterate the recommendation not to use them and say that these airbags must be replaced as soon as possible."
According to the Minister, large numbers of spare parts are expected to arrive in Cyprus and even the companies, which have a very large number of affected vehicles, in the order of 30.000, received assurances from the parent companies, the manufacturers themselves, that they will act to find the airbags and send them to Cyprus.
He stated that "we expect 9.000 airbags to arrive in Cyprus in early March and this means that we can immediately begin implementing the recalls in large numbers."
Regarding human resources problems to proceed with the component changes, the Minister said that they expect an operational plan from the companies, "so that we can see where they are facing problems that will limit the pace of implementation of the recall."
"Some companies have told us about premises. We have identified state premises that we can make available to the companies temporarily, so that they can house airbag replacement crews to expand the number and rate at which they will make them," he said.
Regarding the incident that took place in October and was recently made public, he said that it confirms the risk that drivers run and that is why the Ministry insists on recommending non-use.
"It's not funny. We haven't reduced the risk in any way, we don't want people to think it's okay and there's no risk. We want people to know there's a risk and that's why distributors are describing it that way now," he said.
The Minister also referred to an accident on the highway yesterday involving vehicles that are subject to recall.
He reiterated that the law is clear that the responsibility for recalls lies with the manufacturing company for vehicles with European approval, while the responsibility for vehicles imported into Cyprus lies with the importers.
"We have recommended non-use, there is no way to handle 80.000 cases differently. I cannot come and replace the cars of 80.000 of our fellow citizens, you understand that is impossible," he said.
Mr. Vafeadis added that "we have suggested using a bus, we know that it is not the best solution, we can say that it is not even an ideal solution for all of them, but it is an option. Almost no one has chosen it. But it is an option."
"We need to spend these next few months in a collaborative situation as a whole to find solutions on how to move forward, and distributors need to work together to complete the recalls as quickly as possible," he continued.
When asked if insurance would cover the October incident if it had been fatal, he initially replied that there was a possibility that it would have been a fatal accident. "You'll have to ask the insurance companies themselves about that (if it's covered). What they've told us, but we don't have it in writing, is that yes, it would cover it," he said.
Regarding whether priority will be given to older vehicles, he replied that age is not the only criterion and that another criterion may be climatic conditions and the place where the vehicle is stored.
"All of this contributes to the assessment of risk, and that is why the only ones who know how to make this assessment are construction companies, and they take into account geographical and climatic data," he said.
Electrical installations
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Regarding statements regarding the inspections of electrical installations concerning a relevant bill that was withdrawn by the House of Representatives, the Minister said that for more than 30 years he practiced the profession of architect and knows what the inspection of the Cyprus Electricity Authority means for the safety and quality of the electrical installation.
"I know that there was and is a prevailing trust in the quality of the work they carry out. We do not want this security to be reduced, which is why we have removed, we have withdrawn the bill from Parliament with the intention of re-introducing that the first inspection to be carried out on all buildings will be carried out by the EAC," he said.
He explained that subsequent audits, which will be carried out based on the provisions of the legislation, which will be submitted, can be carried out either by private individuals or by the EAC itself.
"Therefore, we want to ensure that the security of the facilities will be a given and that all citizens will know that the first time they enter the residence, this inspection has been carried out and completed by the EAC and not by someone else. For us, this is a security requirement and that is why we will insist on this provision in the revised bill, which will be submitted for consultation within the next week," he said.
Source: KYPE
