The Vehicle Inspection Center Owners Association of the Philippines Inc. (Vicoap) reminded motorists that while the Land Transportation Office (LTO) has removed the stencil procedure for the renewal of vehicle registrations, they are still required to undergo roadworthiness and verification tests.
Before he stepped down as agency head, former LTO chief Jay Art Tugade issued a memorandum circular that directed the immediate removal of the longstanding cumbersome stencil procedure from a vehicle’s registration renewal process.
“The recent memorandum of the LTO removing the stencil requirement does not mean that vehicle verification is also no longer required; it simply means that the actual stencil shading procedure is no longer required,” Vicoap Spokesperson Fudge Tajar said.
She explained that the stenciling procedure was used to verify the identity of the vehicle. Conducted by inspectors of local district offices (DO) of the LTO, the procedure was part of the Motor Vehicle Inspection Report.
The Inspection Report also includes inspection points for roadworthiness, which are assessed and certified through a physical inspection by authorized LTO Vehicle Inspectors at the DO.
Vehicle identification, Tajar noted, is “still part of their inspection process” that is conducted by private motor vehicle inspection centers (PMVICs).
“PMVIC inspectors visually obtain the engine and chassis numbers, which are then verified against the LTO’s online database. Once verified, the vehicle can then proceed with the rest of the inspection. Worth noting is that the inspection results are both printed out at the PMVIC and also digitally uploaded in real time to the LTO database. The printout serves as the customer’s copy for verification purposes at the LTO district office,” she said.
Tajar further clarified that emission testing is already part of the PMVIC process. This means that getting a Certificate of Emission Compliance (CEC) from a Private Emission Testing Center (PETC), on top of an inspection certificate from a PMVIC is not only redundant but also introduces an unnecessary cost to vehicle owners.
Currently, PMVICs are optional and vehicle owners are free to choose between them or PETCs.
Owners that choose PETCs must subject their vehicles to roadworthiness inspections at an LTO DO, as a CEC only certifies environmental emission compliance and not roadworthiness.
“Vicoap fully supports any government policy that prioritizes customer convenience without compromising on safety and security,” Tajar said.