Auto dealers now hit RTO hurdle

Mumbai: Mumbai: India’s auto industry, already struggling with poor sales, faces another roadblock in some states – regional transport offices in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and West Bengal are not registering new vehicles.

Dealers are not only stuck with commercial vehicles and two-wheelers conforming to the phased-out BS4 emission norms, they’re not even able to get BS6 vehicles registered.

Vinkesh Gulati, vice president of the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations, said many RTOs have gone slow on registration of new vehicles from April even after a government order enabling ‘contactless’ registration.

Some other states have been more progressive. Rajasthan has been a frontrunner in contactless registration, said Nikunj Sanghi, an automotive dealer.

“Contactless registration is currently limited to private vehicles in most states and not for commercial vehicles,” said Sanghi.

RTOs have been asking for written undertakings from dealers. Vehicles are required to be physically inspected at the RTOs. Alternatively, officers from RTOs were willing to inspect them at dealer outlets.

“We were warned not to deliver cars to customers till an inspection was done by RTO authorities,” one dealer said on condition of anonymity.

“Contactless RTO services are appreciated by customers and all stakeholders as it is convenient and minimises transmission. States like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi have taken the lead in such contactless registration of vehicles to use digital systems to provide efficient services for customers,” said Naveen Soni, senior vice president for sales at Toyota Kirloskar Motor. “We expect contactless RTO services to be implemented in other states to ensure speedy contactless services for customers.”

Dealers had something to cheer about after the Supreme Court gave them more time to sell and register BS4 vehicles in view of the lockdown. But now, manufacturers and dealers are struggling with no resolution in sight.

Registration is also becoming a challenge across India as RTOs are still not fully functional. To unblock any BS4 vehicle on the government’s online Vaahan platform so that the dealer can register it has become a tedious task, dealers said.

Dealers are at a loss on what to do with unsold inventory. The dealer of a prominent auto company said it would have to capitalise the vehicles and sell them as pre-owned cars, which will eat into profit.

“We are faced with the worst kind of situation ever. If this is not solved immediately, most dealerships face a complete wipe-out within months,” the dealer said.

Vinay Raghunath, auto practice head at EY, said that unsold BS4 commercial vehicles and two-wheelers are still lying with dealers as there is still a lot of uncertainty over consumer buying behaviour. What would help in these circumstances is an e-registration facility, he said.