The German company Dekra will be in charge of the technical inspection of vehicles in the country as of September, as announced by President Rodrigo Chaves and the Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Luis Amador.
As confirmed by the government, the company will operate in the country for the next two years. A total of 11 companies participated in the process, but only five met the criteria, and a shortlist was made to select the winner.
“We have a company of enormous international prestige that will be doing the vehicle inspection in Costa Rica, at half price and without charging for the second inspection,” said Chaves.
Minister Amador emphasized that the selection criteria included the tariff proposed for the checkup and the experience concerning the number of inspections carried out. He also added that the firm offered not to charge for re-inspections for minor defects and will charge half the fee when vehicles with severe or multiple defects are subject to a second inspection.
“Dekra is one of the most experienced and reputable technical inspection companies in the world,” added Chaves.
Luis Amador also explained that all companies were thoroughly analyzed by competent authorities to ensure the best one would be selected.
“The Road Safety Council undertook the exhaustive task of analyzing the eligibility and experience of the companies. The companies that participated certified eight million vehicle technical inspections; this company has 188 million. We even saw that Dekra generates 3 billion euros in profits, it is a very reliable firm, and the quotations made are within the range that ARESEP established for the technical inspection,” he explained.
In Costa Rica, all vehicles must undergo an annual inspection. For 20 years, the Spanish company Riteve was responsible for said inspections. However, the current administration decided not to renew the concession.
President Chaves said he was very proud that the process did not take place amid “secrecy” but was a transparent process.
Dekra is present in 69 countries and employs 48,000 people globally. It was founded in Berlin in 1925 and is recognized as one of the best companies in the TIC sector (Testing, Inspection, Certification).
