Following the letter of the law in the NCT test

It's not only language but size that matters when it comes to the National Car Test (NCT). Already several motorists have failed the test because the name of the county of origin was not printed in Irish on their number plates.

Now, in the latest strict interpretation of the pass/fail regulations, inspectors are failing cars if the letters on the plate are below 70mm.

One motorist, Robert Leslie, was shocked to learn that his 1999 Volvo passed the NCT on safety and mechanical issues, but failed because the letters on his number plate were only 63mm. Mr Leslie requested a copy of the regulations on number plates from the NCT customer service centre.

According to a spokesperson for the NCT Service, the rules originate from the Department of Transport and require that letters are in block letters and must be 35mm x 70mm. The quality of text on number plates became a fail/refusal issue from September 15th.

For Mr Leslie, the restrictions border on the ridiculous. "I was in a car park later in the day and at random picked out 10 cars. I measured their number heights - four out of 10 were below 70mm."

As to suggestions that the rules are there to aid gardaí in identifying vehicles, Mr Leslie says: "Last year a Garda camera caught me speeding and gardaí seemed to have no problem reading my number plates then."

The Minister of State for Transport, Dr James McDaid, has defended the new regulations stating that "regulations relating to the size and format of number plates were clearly laid out by the Revenue Commissioners in 1992 and the NCT is simply ensuring that the law is complied in this, as in all other elements of the test."