INDIVIDUAL VEHICLE

APPROVAL
IN EUROPE
A Presentation to Philippe Jean-Head of Unit -Automotive Enterprise and Industry and
Jean-Paul Delneufcourt-Chairman TCMV

HIVA-The Problem And A Proportionate Solution

Presented by Anthony Cohen Chairman AIAA
in conjunction with Dominic Ouvaroff-Joint Founder Member AIAA
and Phillippa Hentsch-Parliamentary Assistant to Malcolm Harbour
Observed by Rosalind Travers-TABD EU Assistant Director
 LEGAL OBJECTIVES
enshrined in 2007/46/EC

• High Safety and Environmental standards

• Subsidiarity
• Proportionality
• Single Market rules
• Small Business Act of Europe
• Competition and Consumer Choice
• Extensive Stakeholder Consultation
Good Government
 History of American
Vehicles in Europe
Imported since the Second World War
First imported by American Servicemen
Legalised through German
Einzelbetriebserlaubnis-STVZO
American Car Clubs 50-UK 300 Europe
Micro-SME’s 100 UK 1000 Europe
UK-low volumes as LHD in RHD market
 History of American
Vehicles in Europe
 Fragmented micro-SME’S-no Manufacturer support
 UK SVA started in 1998 after Complaints to DG15
 >250,000 FMVSS/CMVSS vehicles on EU roads
 No Safety and Environmental problems
 Very Low Volumes (UK circa 500) (Europe est.15-20,000)
 Volume split between M1 and N1 about 60%-40%
 Service/parts/warranties/finance/insurance available
 ULTRA low volume with hundreds of potential models
 MR VERHEUGEN’S
REMARKS TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 4TH FEBRUARY 2009

• “Another thing that we can do to stimulate demand and to help and lead the motor industry
through this crisis is to ensure that the conditions of international competition, too, are also not
violated. That is a question that must be directed at the United States, in particular. We will see
what measures President Obama puts in place to counter the crisis in the US motor industry. In
this respect, I would like to point out that it is not in Europe’s interest for the American
carmakers to go under. The consequences for Europe would be catastrophic if that happened.
However, it is likewise not in our interest for the US to institute a policy that would favour its
motor industry at the expense of competitors from other parts of the world. I hope that we will
get the opportunity to discuss this calmly with our American friends.”

• “A tariff barrier against cars from the US, Mr Louis, is definitively not something that we will be
introducing. If there is one thing we will not be doing, this is it. American cars play no real role in
the European market, whereas European cars play a large role in the US market. If there is a
voice here in the European Parliament calling for us to protect our market against American
cars, I fear that there will be a voice in the US Congress in Washington saying that they should
protect their market from European cars. Our position would not look too good in such a
situation. I would ask you in all seriousness not to pursue this idea any further.”
 2007/46/EC
29th April 2009

Large
Manufacturer

ECWVTA
One-size EC Small Series
fits all Nat. Sm. Series
Volume Importer “Equivalence
NIVA to the
Problem: greatest
2500 HHR’s SME extent
Abuse by practicable”
Manufacturer EC Citizen
 THE PROBLEM
When will the loophole be closed, that currently enables the
sale in the EU of large numbers of passenger cars via an
individual type approval? Not only do these vehicles potentially
jeopardise road safety but they can also avoid environmental
taxes with this kind of approval?
WRITTEN QUESTION by Ari Vatanen (PPE‑DE) to the Commission

• Large numbers of identical vehicles imported through National IVA(NIVA) by

Manufacturers

• No one-size fits all

• Undermining of European Type Approval

• Abuse of real IVA by MANUFACTURERS

LOOPHOLE (Landwind, Brilliance, HHR)

• Powerful lobbying of Commission by FIA

• MEP Questions in European Parliament

• Problems for Technical Services in some MS

• By not adopting a proportionate solution, the Commission has over-ridden

the concept of Subsidiarity
 Parliamentary questions
26 February 2008
WRITTEN QUESTION by Othmar Karas (PPE‑DE)
to the Commission
Subject: Directive 2007/46/EC establishing a framework for the approval of motor vehicles
and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for
such vehicles — speedy end to legal loopholes

Following the FIA (International Automobile Federation) Conference on 29 November 2005, in which
catastrophic crash test results for the Chinese motor vehicle ‘Jiangling Landwind’ were disseminated to the
general public, the Commission promised that the legal loophole allowing motor vehicles which put safety at
risk and do not meet EU minimum standards to flood onto the European market would be closed as part of the
recasting of Directive 70/156/EEC(1).
As recent experience shows, the recasting of the directive through Framework Directive 2007/46/EC(2) did not
close this loophole.One recent example shows that, following individual approval in the Netherlands, a total of
2 500 Chevrolet HHR cars are now for sale on the European market.
Bearing in mind that Articles 22 and 23 (in conjunction with Annex XII, Part A, Sections 1 and 2) of Framework
Directive 2007/46/EC restrict the maximum number of small series vehicles of category M1 to 1 000 and 75
units respectively, it is unacceptable that vehicles which pose a serious risk to the safety of EU citizens are still
flooding into the European Union thanks to individual approvals.

When will the legal loophole which makes it possible to use individual
approvals to sell a large number of motor vehicles which pose a danger
to safety in the EU be closed?
 Parliamentary questions
17 April 2008
E-0959/2008
Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

Directive 2007/46/EC( concerning vehicle approval includes provisions regarding the individual approval of vehicles. These
provisions will apply as from 29 April 2009. From that date onwards, individual approvals which, up to now, fell under
national law of the Member States will fall under Community law. Given the provisions of Article 24 (1) of the directive, the
competent authorities of the Member States will not be allowed anymore to grant an individual approval for a new vehicle if
the latter does not comply with the harmonised technical requirements in force in the European Union or with technical
requirements which have been recognised as providing an equivalent level of safety or environment protection.
These measures will guarantee that all vehicles built within, or imported into, the European Union will provide the same level
of safety or protection of the environment.In the meantime, the current Framework Directive on type-approval, which
excludes the individual approval scheme from its scope, continues to apply. This means that Member States still have the
possibility to grant individual approvals on the basis of their national legislation until 29 April 2009. On this basis it is still
legal to import into the European Union new vehicles which would not comply entirely with the Community legislation in this
respect.

Instead, it is up to the Member States to ensure that those vehicles do not constitute a risk for road users. The
Commission is not aware of the fact that several thousand vehicles of the General Motors brand Chevrolet have been
marketed in the Community on the basis of one single approval delivered in one Member State.

If so, that would constitute a violation of the principle of the individual approval scheme
which requires that each particular vehicle has to undergo an approval on a case-by-case approach, in contrast to
type-approval which requires that only one vehicle — the prototype — undergoes the whole approval procedure.
On grounds of the information provided by the Honourable Member, the Commission will investigate the matter
further.
 Draft proposal for
HIVA
Large
Manufacturer

ECWVTA
EC Small Series

Problem: Nat. Sm. Series

Technical bar raised High Volume

beyond capability Only
Importer Manufacturer
of genuine IVA
can comply
for Citizen or SME HIVA
 No Consultation, Better
Regulation or Impact Assessment

• No SME/Public Consultation
• No Proportionality- Sledgehammer to crack a nut
• No Transparency-IVA is for SME’s/Citizens
• No Consistency-with other laws-SBA,WTO,
Consumer, Competition, Culture.
• NoTargeting-Only deal with the Problem
• No Regulatory Impact Assessment
 LEGAL PROBLEMS
with HIVA for SME’s/Individuals

• Proportionality X Unintended consequences

• Article 30/WTO X Age/Standards-distortions
• SBA 2008-SME’s X Beyond Capabilities
• Competition X No SME importers
• Consumers X No Bespoke Vehicles
• Subsidiarity X National Preferences
• Safety/Environment X Vehicles in parc now
 COSTS OF HIVA
for SME’s/Individuals

• > 1,000 longstanding SME’s fail in domino effect

• circa 5000 Unemployed directly

• Additional unemployment in multiplier effect

• Serious safety and environmental effects >250,000 FMVSS/CMVSS

vehicles on EU roads

• Significant effect on personal freedom of choice

• Significant effect on Transatlantic cultural ties/Clubs/lifestyle trend

since 2nd World War

• Encourages import of older vehicle technologies with negative

effect on safety and environment
 THE PROBLEM
RESTATED
When will the loophole be closed, that currently enables the
sale in the EU of large numbers of passenger cars via an
individual type approval? Not only do these vehicles potentially
jeopardise road safety but they can also avoid environmental
taxes with this kind of approval?
WRITTEN QUESTION by Ari Vatanen (PPE‑DE) to the Commission

• Large numbers of identical vehicles imported through National IVA (NIVA) by Manufacturers

• No one-size fits all

• Undermining of European Type Approval

• Abuse of real IVA by MANUFACTURERS

LOOPHOLE (Landwind, Brilliance, HHR)

• Powerful lobbying of Commission by FIA

• MEP Questions in European Parliament

• Problems for Technical Services in some MS

• By not adopting a proportionate solution, the Commission has over-ridden

the concept of Subsidiarity
 OBJECTIVES FOR
FAIR SOLUTION
• DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM-simply and quickly

• Respect principle of SUBSIDIARITY

• Maintain High Safety and Environmental standards

• Proportionality (Better Regulation)

• Single Market rules

• Small Business Act of Europe

• Competition and Consumer Choice

• Transatlantic Relationship
 Subsidiarity
• The “problem” has been distorted and in
not arriving at a proportionate solution for
SME’s and Individuals, the concept of
Subsidiarity afforded to Member States
under EC LAW has been forgotten.
 From the office of Malcolm
Harbour 13th January 2010

• “Malcolm Harbour was the original "Rapporteur"

in the Parliament on the type approval regulation
and therefore knows the issues very well - the
development of this standard should only be
used to enhance safety and quite clearly, as you
have explained, American cars are manufactured
to the same high standards as Europe and low
volume imports should be excluded. This was
never the intention of the legislation”.
 Possible
Approaches
• Numerical Limits X
-very difficult to administer

• Give MS discretion to X
define low Volume for NIVA
( already been done in effect under Article 24)

• Re-categorisation ✓
-simplest solution -
Only MANUFACTURERS have
ABUSED IVA
 SOLUTION 1
Amend Article 22
Large Manufacturer

ECWVTA
Amend Article 22
EC Small Series Only available
to include imports for Official
Importer/
EC Small Series- COC Manufacturer
Nat. Small Series

Real IVA as per

NIVA Not available to
Article 24 Wording.
Subsidiarity maintained SME’s Manufacturers.
with regulation Low chance of
close to SME/Citizen EC Citizen abuse
 SOLUTION 2
HIVA + NIVA
New Article 24A or Amend Annex

Large
Manufacturer

ECWVTA
Technical bar can
stay high for mass
volume-prevent
Only available
Landwind/Brilliance
for Official
problem. EC Small Series- COC
Importer/
Prevent HHR abuse
HIVA-COC Manufacturer
Nat. Small Series

Real IVA as per

NIVA
Article 24 Wording. Not available to
Subsidiarity maintained SME’s Manufacturers
with regulation EC Citizen Low chance of
close to SME/Citizen abuse
 SUBSIDIARITY
SCALE OF VEHICLE APPROVAL

All COC Multi-National Huge Single

Vehicles Manufacturers Market Benefits

All
Harmonised
Regulations
inc HIVA ?
> 99% Parc
National
National Regulation
Regulation
achieves
close to the Small National proportionality
SME/Citizen Manufacturers respecting MS
Citizen unique safety
SME and environmental
Mutual objectives
Recognition
 Benefits of Solution
• High Safety and Environmental standards maintained

• Low Risk of Abuse-SME’s only import in very low volume

• Subsidiarity Respected- Regulations are targeted at correct level

• EC HIVA or EC Small Series amendment for benefit of

manufacturers

• Proportionality-No unintended consequences

• Better Regulation- European Simplification Plans complied with

• Single Market rules respected HIVA=COC NIVA=MR

• Small Business Act of Europe- “Think Small First”

• Competition and Consumer Choice maintained

• Results of Stakeholder Consultation in 2007/46/EC respected

INDIVIDUAL VEHICLE
APPROVAL
IN EUROPE

The problem and a proportionate solution

Presented by Anthony Cohen-Chairman AIAA on
18th January 2010 at the European Commission