Just in case you didn't think you were a second class citizen...

[Max Preload]

BTW did your insurance cough up when you crashed your bike?

What insurance? I've never bothered with it on any vehicle. I've crashed twice in the 23 years I've been riding - a minor one in 1992 and early last year - and both times were my fault. I've had several minor fender-benders in cars and none were my fault. It just simply doesn't add up financially for me to be paying out premiums. It might if I was throwing them down the road on a regular basis.

But insurance would have paid anyway - the absence of a current WoF & current vehicle license aren't contributing factors, just as having both doesn't guarantee a payout if there's a fault you should have reasonably known about, that was a contributing factor.

[Ocean1]

And your point is?

...

Kickback? I'm intrigued to know what underhanded machinations you think the WOF process operates under.

This one:

Here's how it works.

It cost me about $600 for my WOF site application and about $150 for my personal application. Two months after handing over $750 to get my certification I was subject to my first WOF audit. The privilege of having an inspector come out to assess my progress cost me a further $650. Thankfully I scored highly enough that my periodic audits only happen every two years (at a further cost of $650 each time). WOF labels and checksheets are purchased at my cost. After that though, whatever I charge for a WOF inspection comes entirely back to my business.

Without the extra overhead you'd be getting paid for the work you were hired to do: check the bike.

As it is...

It takes a long time to recoup the intial (and ongoing) costs of being an Issuing Authority and considering the time taken to carry out the inspection, the long and the short of it is that, for a workshop such as mine there is not a great deal of money to be made in WOFs. I see it as little more than an extra service that I can offer my customers.

See, when this sort of financial imposition isn't sanctioned by 'Er Majesty's government we call it a protection racket. There's sure as fuck no practical personal or social advantage to the "service".

[Katman]

There's sure as fuck no practical personal or social advantage to the "service".

As has been said, until New Zealanders can be trusted to fully maintain the vehicles that they put on our roads amongst the rest of us, compulsory safety checks will always be necessary.

The attempts at convincing an inspector that something "shouldn't matter" could make a book.

There's people out there that don't give a fuck about the safety of their vehicle - only that they get a warrent.

[Fatt Max]

There's people out there that don't give a fuck about the safety of their vehicle - only that they get a warrent.

Thats right, and you try getting a WOF on a chieftan tank with a faulty firing pin, absolute bastard......

Mind you, the Irish navy had to de-commission their entire submarine fleet cos someone forgot to install an adequate number of parachutes...

[Ocean1]

As has been said, until New Zealanders can be trusted to fully maintain the vehicles that they put on our roads amongst the rest of us, compulsory safety checks will always be necessary.

I'm sick of hearing it, as a causal link to accident rates on public roads a WOF is statistically irrelevant. It's bullshit, always has been, some poli's wet dream in response to a model A ending up in a ditch because the NONSKID tread was worn off. And like every piece of legislation designed to manage public behaviour it's an utter failure.

[98tls]

I'm sick of hearing it, as a causal link to accident rates on public roads a WOF is statistically irrelevant. It's bullshit, always has been, some poli's wet dream in response to a model A ending up in a ditch because the NONSKID tread was worn off. And like every piece of legislation designed to manage public behaviour it's an utter failure.

Theres got to be something though eh,bugger me some of the crap young fellas get around in these days defies belief,then again most of em cant work out which way round a baseball caps worn so it no surprise that there as mechanical as a brick.

[onearmedbandit]

then again most of em cant work out which way round a baseball caps worn so it no surprise that there as mechanical as a brick.

I remember that was fashion back in the 80's too. Nothings changed with the yoof. Their fashion, their music, their attitude, their language, it's always shocked/disappointed the older generation. Even yours and mine.

[riffer]

I'm sick of hearing it, as a causal link to accident rates on public roads a WOF is statistically irrelevant. It's bullshit, always has been, some poli's wet dream in response to a model A ending up in a ditch because the NONSKID tread was worn off. And like every piece of legislation designed to manage public behaviour it's an utter failure.

While I do agree with you on this, to remove the WOF would require the onus on the Police to check more motor vehicles on the road. Thus leading to many more complaints about infringement of rights, etc.

As we are well aware, certain members of the public do like to mod their cars and suspension has, in some cases, been modded to the point of non-functionality. I have a concern this sort of thing would be harder to keep off the roads. We would still require some sort of independent assessment facility in the case of pink-stickering of cars.

A bit of a legal nightmare, but as you say, its definitely possible to do.

[Ocean1]

While I do agree with you on this, to remove the WOF would require the onus on the Police to check more motor vehicles on the road. Thus leading to many more complaints about infringement of rights, etc.

Apocryphal, to be sure but the French foreign legion had/(has?) no prohibition against the consumption of alcohol. The penalty for being found drunk on duty was death by firing squad.

In WA there are no vehicle technical compliance checks. The fine for being found with less than legal tread depth is savage.

Another thought: Compare a sample of vintage or even classic road legal cars against a poorly maintained modern car in terms of safety.

As far as I’m concerned the compliance regimes associated with the modern concept of “SAFETY” is a bit of a joke. Compare the histrionics surrounding a death from a typical traffic accident to the management of our infrastructure such that the morning commute is 45 min for over 500,000 people. That’s 43 years. Every day. More life lost than the total annual road toll.

[bogan]

I'm sick of hearing it, as a causal link to accident rates on public roads a WOF is statistically irrelevant. It's bullshit, always has been, some poli's wet dream in response to a model A ending up in a ditch because the NONSKID tread was worn off. And like every piece of legislation designed to manage public behaviour it's an utter failure.

and don't even get me started on vehicle certs, 500 bucks to tell me my vehicle is safe, I know it's safe cos I just spend fucking ages making it safer than stock

[red mermaid]

In that case you are in the minority because if dealt with these vehicles you would know the sort of modified death traps there is on our roads.

[bogan]

In that case you are in the minority because if dealt with these vehicles you would know the sort of modified death traps there is on our roads.

yeh, but surely if they are such death traps it'd show up in a wof? and I know plenty of other guys that mod properly, some even have certs, maybe you just notice the shit ones more easily/often

[scumdog]

yeh, but surely if they are such death traps it'd show up in a wof? and I know plenty of other guys that mod properly, some even have certs, maybe you just notice the shit ones more easily/often

The WOF is a 50-50 thing..it lasts 50 seconds or 50 metres, whichever comes first.

Idiots have been known to swap suspension struts to get a WOF - then put the dangerously modified ones back onto their p.o.s. car once they have got the WOF. - or even take out the coils all together

The same with wheels/tyres etc. - put good ones on for WOF then put the fat-but-smooth ones back on afterwards.

And a stack of washers to space out the wheels that were never designed for that particular car

Or fit a standard steering wheel for the WOF but then fit the small sports wheel afterwards - using pop-rivets jambed down between the splines on the wheel-boss and the steering column because the boss is too big for the column.

And so it goes on....they're out there, sharing a road somewhere with you....

[riffer]

And so it goes on....they're out there, sharing a road somewhere with you....

So speak to me from experience then SD. If we wiped the WOF and gave you the right to stop and impound cars on the side of the road for non-safety issues, what kind of can of worms would we be opening then?

[scumdog]

So speak to me from experience then SD. If we wiped the WOF and gave you the right to stop and impound cars on the side of the road for non-safety issues, what kind of can of worms would we be opening then?

Hmm, we don't impound for safety issues as it is so I would have to think about what you suggested.

(Driving a car that has been 'pink stickerered' is not an impound reason)