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Car owners rush to register 4,700 vehicles in a week to avoid penalties
Used cars at a yard in Mombasa. National Transport and Safety Authority directed dealers to register all unlisted vehicles in their showrooms and yards by December 16, 2024.
Car owners have registered 4,700 vehicles in a week to avoid fines of up to Sh300,000 following a State directive barring the use of unregistered vehicles on Kenyan roads.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) disclosed the figures on Monday when the registration window closed, setting the stage for fines on those using unregistered units.
The Traffic Act forbids the use of unregistered vehicles and those without number plates. Individuals caught violating this provision are liable to a fine not exceeding Sh300,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or both.
The NTSA had issued the directive two weeks ago as it sought to curb the high number of unregistered vehicles on the roads, even as car dealers accused the agency of abetting the vice.
“We have registered 4,700 motor vehicles since the deadline was issued. NTSA does not have the exact estimate of unregistered vehicles since the applications have not been lodged into the motor vehicle registration portal,” Cosmas Ngeso, Director of Registration and Licensing at NTSA said.
The use of unregistered vehicles or those with fake plates has been tied to criminal activities like terrorism, kidnapping and robbery.
Motorists are also using unregistered vehicles that are affixed with the KD (Kenya Dealers) plates. These KD plates are temporary and can only be used between 6 am and 6 pm.
The number of vehicles registered following NTSA’s directive is a tenth of all vehicles (excluding motorcycles and three-wheelers) registered between January and September this year.
Some 47,052 vehicles (excluding motorcycles and three-wheelers) were registered in the nine months to September this year, a drop of 57 percent from the 82,590 registered in the same period last year.
Car dealers last week attributed the growing use of unregistered vehicles to lapses and collusion by NTSA officials and other State agencies involved in the clearing of imported vehicles.
Kenya Revenue Authority, through its appointed container freight station operators, and the Kenya Bureau of Standards are the other agencies involved in the clearing of imported vehicles.
There are fears that all unregistered vehicles on the roads would be impounded, following the lapse of the deadline on Monday but the NTSA played down the concerns even as it remained coy on the next course of action.
“We have not impounded any vehicle yet,” Mr Ngeso added.
NTSA is the State agency tasked with registering vehicles. General number plates cost Sh2,050, while the preferred or special ones go for Sh30,000. Customised number plates cost Sh1 million.
