The price of safety: Expect more expensive vehicle inspections as province lifts $55 fee cap

If you're taking your vehicle into a Manitoba shop for a safety inspection, expect to pay more than you would have last month.

The provincial government has scrapped a $55 maximum price cap for the safety inspections — required before a newly acquired vehicle can be registered in Manitoba — and will let auto repair shops set the cost, which one mechanic estimated is actually around $100 to $200. 

The change was tucked into a government bill, which came into effect on March 1, that revised several pieces of transportation legislation.

Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler said it's becoming more complicated and expensive for mechanics to ensure a vehicle is ready for the road.

"We can't have individual mechanic shops subsidizing people wanting to sell their vehicles," he said, after the issue was raised by the Opposition NDP during question period at the legislature on Wednesday.

The bill also adds responsibilities for mechanics completing safety inspections, like making sure airbags and the tint on windows are inspected.

"The list is getting longer and longer and the mechanic shops are indicating to us that they can't do that for $55," he said.

$55 rate wasn't fair: auto shop manager

Michael Jones, service manager at Keystone Auto Repair in Winnipeg, said the previous rate wasn't fair to mechanics.

"There was pressure to rush [the inspections] because you aren't being paid properly for your time," he said. "Now, shops can take the time, do the more thorough inspection." 

Consumers will now get a better, and more credible, safety inspection, he said, because the old regulations permitted things like approving a vehicle without working airbags.

NDP Leader Wab Kinew is worried the province is ignoring the perspective of drivers — like the parent who wants to give their child their first set of keys, but needs a safety inspection before the child can register the vehicle.

"The government appears to have a lot of time for used-car salesmen and mechanics, but I think the average person might be a little skeptical," Kinew said.

"The average person probably wants things to stay affordable."