P.E.I. won't be getting rid of its annual vehicle inspections, after safety data review

Thinh Nguyen · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 17, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

The state of Prince Edward Island volition proceed to necessitate yearly centrifugal conveyance inspections, after ordering a reappraisal of its programme and those successful different provinces.

Currently, each vehicles connected the Island indispensable beryllium inspected by a licensed mechanic every twelvemonth successful bid to suffice for an up-to-date inspection sticker. In immoderate different provinces, similar neighbouring Nova Scotia, inspections are required lone each 2 years.

P.E.I. Transportation Minister Ernie Hudson said a reappraisal done successful December recovered nary beardown grounds to warrant changing the centrifugal conveyance inspection (MVI) frequency.

"The determination has been made by myself, certainly, arsenic minister, that determination volition beryllium nary alteration to the yearly request of a centrifugal conveyance inspection, and that is based connected the information, what we person delved into," helium told CBC News successful an interview. "Safety, arsenic I've said before, ever has to beryllium paramount."

While the yearly inspection request volition remain, Hudson said his section volition look astatine whether to let immoderate leeway for caller vehicles, which already acquisition what's known arsenic a pre-delivery inspection (PDI) earlier reaching the consumer.

"We bash person to look astatine that, look what that PDI does entail arsenic compared to what our MVI entails," helium said. "With respect to caller vehicles, we volition beryllium taking a person look astatine that, and hopefully, wrong the adjacent mates of months, beryllium successful a presumption to marque a last determination connected that."

Review highlighted information concerns

Hudson said the reappraisal was sparked by questions raised by subordinate of the nationalist arsenic good arsenic MLAs successful the legislature.

He pointed to information from 2022 highlighting the request for continued yearly checks. That year, retired of 126,123 vehicles inspected connected P.E.I., astir 10 per cent were recovered to have defective brakes.

"To me, that's a reasonably precocious number," Hudson said.

Other findings from the reappraisal included:

• About 6 per cent of vehicles inspected successful 2022 had defective suspension systems.
• Nearly 5 per cent had issues with tires and wheels.
• About 7 per cent had steering, exhaust or assemblage framework issues.

The state besides looked astatine nationalist and planetary data. One U.S. study, published successful 2023, recovered that jurisdictions with an progressive information inspection and attraction programme for rider vehicles thin to acquisition little roadway fatality rates.

In Canada, vehicle-related factors contributed to 3.5 per cent of fatal collisions successful 2022, according to Statistics Canada.

"I, arsenic minister, surely bash not privation to bash anything, spot thing instrumentality spot that would effect successful an summation successful conveyance collisions, injuries and the similar that resulted from a alteration from an yearly centrifugal conveyance inspection," Hudson said.

"Do we privation to support it astatine 3.5 per cent oregon successful that vicinity? No, I privation to spot it spell little than that."

Hudson besides noted that the outgo of an inspection connected P.E.I. remains affordable, capped astatine $30 compared to $100 oregon much successful different provinces.

"To me, $30 is not that precocious of a terms to wage to marque definite that your conveyance is successful bully moving order, that your conveyance is harmless and volition proceed to beryllium harmless implicit the adjacent year, until you person your adjacent MVI done."