The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Bahamian auto dealers yesterday expressed hope that proposed Road Traffic Department reforms will ultimately result in a vehicle titling system, one telling Tribune Business its creation was “past desperation point”.

Rick Lowe, director/operations manager at Nassau Motor Company (NMC), expressed hope that the current tender for a new software system at Road Traffic would extend to producing/recording vehicle title document, even though this was not included in the bid’s work scope.

He was backed by Fred Albury, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association’s (BMDA) president, who said a Bahamian vehicle title system was “extremely badly needed” to protect both the private sector and Bahamian consumers.

He added that the proposed upgrades to Road Traffic’s internal systems, while estimating that they might take two years to fully implement, would be “like going from a dinosaur to oil”.

Messrs Albury and Lowe, together with banking and insurance industry executives, joined government officials in viewing the presentations given by the four final bidders on the Road Traffic contract.

Tribune Business understands that two have partnered with Bahamian companies, Custom Computers and Micronet, in their bids. Among the bidders are understood to be Canadian Bank Note Company; UK-based Andrews & Wykeham; and a New Zealand company, called either Datatrack or Datacom.

Mr Lowe said the contract envisaged new software systems at Road Traffic to deal with the issuance of driver licences and vehicle inspection stickers, integrating the two and preventing their release to non-payers. Tie-ins to other government departments, chiefly Customs, the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Ministry of Finance, are also planned.

“It looks like it’s headed in the right direction; I just hope they can pull it off,” Mr Lowe told Tribune Business.

“It’s great that they’re upgrading Road Traffic. Finding the ideal system might not be in the works, but if they can get something that makes everyone accountable, and closes some of the gaps for theft, fraud, tax evasion and actual vehicle theft.....”

The Nassau Motor Company executive said auto dealers were “hopeful it’s going to include a vehicle title document. It’s there, but not included in the RFP”.

Auto dealers, together with banks and insurance companies, have long called for the Bahamas to introduce a formal vehicle title system as a means to help curtail vehicle theft, plus better protect their security and that of consumers.

The theory goes that requiring all vehicle owners to possess the relevant title documents will prevent the sale of autos that are encumbered by existing liens/loans, thus protecting both the unsuspecting buyer and lender’s security.

It would also act as a stumbling block to the sale/importation of stolen cars and vehicles that were imported as wrecks, as the seller would have to produce a title document showing an auto’s history and previous condition.

“We think it will help prevent theft,” Mr Lowe told Tribune Business. “You get proper identification for your vehicle, so the banks and insurance companies are secure.

“This business with what’s going on with imported wrecks will hopefully be prevented, as they will not go on the road.

“Documents will go with the car, either kept at the bank when there is a loan, or the consumer will have it to present.”

Asked how important it was for the Bahamas to implement a vehicle titling system, Mr Lowe told Tribune Business: “It’s past the desperation point now. People need to be accountable.

“A lot of Bahamians are losing their assets. Their hard money goes into buying a car, and if it’s stolen there’s no way to track it. They’re losing their shirts because people are stealing their cars.

“They could have bought a $3,000 car, sunk their life savings into it, it disappears and they’re left holding the bag. Right now, the police seem to have their hands full with it, and there doesn’t seem to be any respite.”

Mr Albury, meanwhile, said one of the bidder presentations he saw would allow for vehicle titling to be done within the system. Title documents could be created, information added to them, and access granted for a fee.

He added that the software would likely introduce a secure database, accessible only to authorised users, where the desired data and controls could be entered.

Mr Albury said that, if properly implemented, the system could allow auto dealers, banks and insurance companies to detect the sale of vehicles with outstanding liens attached to them.

“We’ve been talking to them, so that if the system goes in place, we’d like to have access to that,” the BMDA chief said. “Banks would be able to record their interest on a vehicle title, so if someone tries to sell it, they will not be able to transfer the title.

“If insurance companies were able to have access, if a vehicle was damaged or flood damaged, they’d be able to put it on the title. It would protect the consumer.”

Mr Albury added that Customs could also enter the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) of every imported vehicle at the border, registering year, make, model and owner.

And there was also the potential for a Department of Statistics tie-in, which would allow auto dealers to consult its database and determine how many cars of a particular make and model were on the roads.

This, Mr Albury said, would permit “better planning” in his dealerships’ parts and service departments.

“They want to modernise, and from what I’ve seen it will take us in leaps and bounds to the future,” the BMDA chief told Tribune Business.

“We have a dinosaur system right now, and moving to a system like this will be a first world scenario. I feel it would satisfy all the needs of all the stakeholders in the industry.

“The consumer would benefit tremendously from this, as we have all these wrecked cars coming into the country that are rebuilt and sold to unsuspecting consumers.

“You import a wreck, it’s titled as a wreck and you know you’re buying a wreck.”