LTO, DOTC to reveal delinquent car dealers in license plate controversy

The Land Transportation Office and the Department of Transportation and Communications are releasing a list of delinquent car dealerships in the coming weeks, essentially saying the dealers are responsible for unissued license plates.

 

“The public deserves to know if their car dealerships are shortchanging them. We will release lists of delinquent dealers in the coming weeks to show which ones aren’t fulfilling their promises to their customers,” DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said in a statement Tuesday.

 

Abaya and DOTC Assistant Secretary and LTO chief Alfonso Tan Jr. decided to reveal the names of delinquent dealerships "upon receiving reports that the latter deliberately misinform their customers as to the status of their license plate applications.

 

The statement was issued a day after a GMA News Online article revealed that motorists are not getting their plate numbers even after paying P450 for a new plate number as part of the registration fee.

 

According to the Beep-beep column on Monday, an LTO insider has revealed that plates ending in “1” are already available in LTO branches nationwide but plates ending in “2” up to 9” are still a big question mark.

 

“It’s their fault, because the supplier initially… supplied us with defective plates,” the LTO insider said.

 

The luminous paint on the defective plates supposedly were getting stripped – nababakbak, the column noted.

 

“The problem is that the delinquent dealers tell their customers that the LTO does not have new plates, when in fact, they’re the ones who aren’t fulfilling their services. They let months pass despite knowing full well that the plates are ready – and they even mislead their customers about it,” the DOTC chief said.

 

Tan noted that license plates for first-time motor vehicle registrations are "available on-demand." However, many of these plates remain unclaimed from LTO offices.

 

“For owners of new motor vehicles whose dealers tell them that the LTO is not ready with new plates: come to our offices so you can claim them yourselves. Your license plates are ready at your place of registration,” he said.

 

The LTO regulates vehicle dealerships and can suspend and revoke accreditation when warranted, according to the DOTC.

 

The License Plate Standardization Program of LTO will phase out the nine existing designs currently in use, over the next two years.

 

The new plates has a black-on-white design and contains security features such as tamper-resistant locks, reflective sheet material and a "third-plate" sticker that will replace the windshield stickers currently issued as proof of annual registration.  

 

Registration stickers attached to license plates will no longer be issued for new license plates, according to the DOTC. – VS, GMA News