An inquiry investigating vehicle safety and recall procedures is intensifying its focus on potentially dangerous Takata airbags in cars imported from both EU and non-EU countries, officials said on Thursday.
The inquiry committee, appointed by the Attorney General on March 11, heard testimony from representatives of the Pancyprian Union of Car Traders (PASEA) in its third session, following earlier hearings with the Association of Motor Vehicle and Electric Vehicle Importers.
PASEA representatives claimed they only became aware of a 2017 Department of Road Transport circular regarding recalls in November 2024, and were never consulted on its content.
“We were never asked to help shape its content,” said Charalambos Kolokotronis, chairman of PASEA’s Nicosia local committee, referring to the circular that exempts new car distributors from responsibility for used vehicles imported from non-EU countries.
Andreas Antoniou, PASEA’s vice president, alleged that representatives from major dealerships Toyota/Lexus and Mercedes admitted to parliament’s Transport Committee in late 2024 that “for 20 years they had not recalled 40,000 of their vehicles” and were never scrutinised by regulators.
The committee is examining procedures for vehicle imports, approvals and recalls in Cyprus dating back to the country’s EU accession in 2004, with particular focus on defective Takata airbags that have triggered worldwide recalls.
Kolokotronis explained that the current Single Vehicle Approval (SVA) system, established after Cyprus joined the EU, cannot detect defective Takata airbags during standard MOT tests for imported used vehicles.
He also claimed that while used car imports appear to account for 35% of the market and are attributed to PASEA members, “more than half of these cars are not imported by union members but by individuals and ‘pirates’ who bring them in to trade without proper checks”.
Andreas Kitsos, a PASEA member who manages an SVA station in Larnaca, acknowledged when questioned that it is inappropriate for SVA station owners to also trade in used vehicles, revealing a potential conflict of interest in the inspection system.
The inquiry committee chairman announced that police representatives will testify at the next hearing about accidents caused by defective components, along with relatives of victims who died in such incidents. Testimonies are expected to conclude by the end of May.
The investigative committee’s mandate includes examining vehicle import and approval procedures, recall processes, regulatory oversight, and determining responsibilities of manufacturers, importers and dealers regarding defective vehicles.
