The O.R.E.L. (Odometer Records Exchange Ledger) program, proposed by GERB/EPP MEP Andrey Novakov, and approved and financed by the European Commission, envisages the creation of a single platform in which all points for annual technical inspections of the community will submit information about the real mileage of each car. The goal is for the information to be available on the Internet so that anyone who is going to buy a used car can check it before the deal via their computer or phone. How is the program developing… MEP Andrey Novakov (GERB/EPP) speaks to FACTI.
- Mr. Novakov, Bulgaria received positive reports on the adoption of the euro. How was this news received in the European Parliament?
- This news was welcomed by the vast majority of colleagues in the European Parliament. It was not a surprise, as it has been in the works for a long time. I am happy that, in the end, we are completing the last stage of Bulgaria's full integration into the European Union. This certainly means more peace of mind, more security for everyone who is economically active in Bulgaria. I am sure that we will see the long-term benefits for every person in our country. In the European Parliament, people welcomed this news with joy that Bulgaria has dedicated itself to this process, that it has successfully undergone all the reforms it had to make to get here.
- And let's talk about a long-standing cause that you stand for. It is about your idea of creating a common database of the mileage recorded by cars during technical inspections, which can be shared by all EU member states, and it is progressing. What stage is it at today?
- This is a problem that I have been persistently working on since 2017. Then I submitted a pilot project and received the support of the European Parliament. The reason was that this was bothering many people, costing them thousands of euros, and the specific reason was the story of a family from Vratsa who had taken out a loan to buy a car from Germany. After a long time of saving and going into debt with the bank in order to have a “newly imported” car, it turns out that the car is not 150,000 km, but 450,000 km and needs repairs for several thousand levs more. This had ruined them and I realized that the solution to a European problem could come from Bulgaria.
- How big a problem is the manipulation of the mileage of used vehicles in the EU?
- Bigger than you think. On average, mileage fraud costs about 3,000 euros per car, with a total damage for the EU of between 6 and 9 billion euros. And this is nothing compared to all the lives that are at risk. Because a car with 100,000 km stops and turns one way, a car with half a million kilometers - another. This is pure theft and gambling with people's lives. Any buyer who is deliberately misled about the mileage of the car is, in my opinion, robbed. I am sure that almost every reader will agree that the price of a car with an almost expired resource is probably 1/3 of the price of a car that is just about to expire under warranty. Everyone has the right to an informed choice, especially when it comes to a vehicle that you entrust the life of your family to.
- And how are things in Bulgaria? It is alleged that over 70% of cars on the secondary market have manipulated mileage. Is that how many?
- From the reports I have seen, I can say that the assumption is that about half of the second-hand cars in Europe have over-wound mileage. My feeling is that it is even more. Still, it is difficult for me to imagine that a 15-year-old car has only driven 70,000 km and has been in a garage. Especially in Western Europe.
- Where are we compared to the EU countries?
- We are one of the major importers of “second-hand“ cars and therefore we are among the most affected. It may come as a surprise to some, but many of the cars are manipulated before they come here and this is not a Bulgarian problem. Alas, buying a device for over-wound mileage is as easy as buying a waffle.
- You managed to obtain funding from the European Commission of 1.25 million. euros back in 2017. What was stopping the development of the program?
- The budget was aimed at developing and testing a system that would allow the collection of such a huge volume of information without any problems. There was a group of countries that did not accept the idea and resisted its implementation. Despite them, another group of countries expressed interest in joining the test phase of the project.
- Why were countries like Germany against it for a long time. What was stopping them?
- The argument that was put forward to me was that this is personal data. Both the VIN number of the car and the mileage indicator. The problem with the first one was solved by sharing only the first 10 digits of the number, which is quite enough. As for the second one - I still don't understand what is personal in the mileage readings. And if you don't have selfish goals to sell the car by lying about the mileage, I don't see what there is to hide.
- The Car-Pass system works in Belgium. How will countries that have such databases join the common program at the EU level?
- The Belgian example is very good. The Benelux countries have been sharing such information for 20 years and this only benefits consumers. The European Commission's solution is in the integration of the systems, which they propose.
- The data will be updated only during an annual technical inspection (ATI) or when visiting a service station, because the question arises as to how the service stations will be included in the program?
- The proposal is that the data will be entered at every annual inspection. However, it also provides that any service station offering services for which an invoice can be issued can also do so. Separately, new cars that are connected to the Internet must submit such information through the manufacturer every three months. The main emphasis for me should be on the ATI points. And now this data is being collected, and now it is being entered and stored, it will simply be shared and will be accessible to every potential buyer.
- How will it happen that every EU member state will be obliged to record the vehicle's mileage in a national database?
- This is already happening in many places. Such databases exist. Now there will be a system that will unite them at the European level. So a car that passed inspection in Italy 2 years ago and had 350,000 km, no one will be able to sell it to you in Bulgaria with 100,000 km. You will simply catch the lie.