WOFs. Did you know...

[Grumpy]

I was reading an article about the Wellington parking wardens and their somewhat dubious activities of late and one piece of info stuck out that I found interesting.

I had always assumed that if your vehicle had just failed a check the 28 day period that you have to get it rechecked meant that if you were stopped by an enforcement officer you should be good. Now using that logic, if you were ticketed by one of those over zealous wardens for not displaying a current WOF all you had to do was truck down to council office and show them your copy of the WOF ckecklist thingy that you get and once it has been established that you are within that 28 day period you should be sweet.

Well.... apparently not. The 28 day period is simply a contract between you and the tester. If you've failed you are simply operating your vehicle without a current WOF. Even a cop, if he's having a bad day can ticket you the day after. Then there's the impact that this could have on your insurance if you have an accident.

All this time I've been leaving my WOF checks to last minute thinking I had that 28 day grace period up my sleeve. Apparently the advice offered in the article was to get your checks done a month before your WOF is due to run out.

Surely I'm not the only person who had this understanding. This could be a little embarrasing if I am.

[Virago]

Where on earth did you get that idea?

The WOF laws are quite specific - if the WOF is expired, you can only use the vehicle for the express purpose of getting a WOF.

A fail is not a 28 day WOF.

[neels]

A fail is not a 28 day WOF.

Correct, it is quite the opposite, it is telling you that your vehicle is not roadworthy and therefore not legal to be on the road.

[bane]

Apparently the advice offered in the article was to get your checks done a month before your WOF is due to run out.

I thought 14 days before was the maximum allowed? (to keep the same due date for the WOF). If you get it checked a month before and pass, is the WOF still renewed from the original due date?

[Grumpy]

Where on earth did you get that idea?

Well judging by the way the article was written I'm not the only idiot out there. The sad thing is I don't even know where I got that idea from. Now I'm starting to wonder what other "false" beliefs I've been hanging on to....

I've got some questions about Santa but perhaps I'll leave those for another thread.

[Str8 Jacket]

You either have a WoF or you don't... Thought it was pretty clear cut myself.

[davebullet]

Get your WOF done 5 days or so before expiry. Usually the tester will date it on the anniversary of your WOF so you don't lose 5 days... but have 5 days to fix something before it expires.

[red mermaid]

Very common false belief, thats why I tell people to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about, instead of the bush lawyers who constantly guess and post.

[onearmedbandit]

However not having a current WoF doesn't necessarily invalidate your insurance. Sure if your car has failed on dodgey tyres and they are considered a contributing factor, then bye bye insurance. But if it failed because of the right rear seatbelt that won't have any bearing. Except for the person sitting in that seat.

[roadracingoldfart]

The 28 day period is simply a time for you to rectify the faults and re-present before another inspection fee has to be paid.
When you fail you get 28 days to present for a recheck and then the issue you failed on (say tyres) is the only issue checked and then ticked off and a pass is issued.
If you come early for a wof then the AVI can post date the pass date 14 days .
If you have a wof done early and fail , the sticker reads the original date so a parking warden does not know any better and will leave you alone.

Paul.

I have heard some storied about insurance claims being refused due to a wof failure at the time of an accident but most will consider the failure item to determine if its a contributing factor to the accident.
The sweetest failure i have ever seen was on a police car that had pulled me over and even though i had a wof , he was worried about my tyre tread and was about to measure it when i pointed out his patrol car had neither a wof or registration , after he went a funny shade of red he decided a warning for me was in the best interest in this case.

[crazyhorse]

The 28 day period is simply a time for you to rectify the faults and re-present before another inspection fee has to be paid.
When you fail you get 28 days to present for a recheck and then the issue you failed on (say tyres) is the only issue checked and then ticked off and a pass is issued.
If you come early for a wof then the AVI can post date the pass date 14 days .
If you have a wof done early and fail , the sticker reads the original date so a parking warden does not know any better and will leave you alone.

Paul.

I have heard some storied about insurance claims being refused due to a wof failure at the time of an accident but most will consider the failure item to determine if its a contributing factor to the accident.
The sweetest failure i have ever seen was on a police car that had pulled me over and even though i had a wof , he was worried about my tyre tread and was about to measure it when i pointed out his patrol car had neither a wof or registration , after he went a funny shade of red he decided a warning for me was in the best interest in this case.

What he said

[Kickaha]

Just because you have a wof doesn't mean you can't be ticketed for not having a vehicle up to wof spec either

[roadracingoldfart]

Just because you have a wof doesn't mean you can't be ticketed for not having a vehicle up to wof spec either

Your rite , but...... a general duties officer cant determine if a fault is valid as contraveening of the wof regs as the regulations are firmly written by the Minister of the LTSA and a cop is not a qualified inspector , although they can ask for a check to be performed by a cviu or similar who are qualified and will put a car over the pits if they are concerned.
I like it that way as there can be no personal interpretation of the regs by using logic , its a regs based verdict. Logic is not allowed in Govt regs .

[FROSTY:Me]

You are permitted by law to take a vehicle DIRECTLY to an appropriate place of repair and from there directly back to the pace that failed you your WOF.
So stopping for lunch or stopping into the bank to get the money for a tyre for example is a situation where wardens can legitimately ticket you.
A police officer can order a vehicle off the road untill such time as it has been through a WOF and passed.In that case the vehicle is not soposed to be driven as its concidered to be unsafe tobe on the road.

[kwaka_crasher]

I thought 14 days before was the maximum allowed? (to keep the same due date for the WOF). If you get it checked a month before and pass, is the WOF still renewed from the original due date?

The WoF can be advanced up to 14 days, so if it passes say 10 days before expiry your new expiry date should be as if it passed on the actual expiry date.