THREE CARS belonging to a local car rental company have been stolen in less than two months.
And this has prompted the owner to call for the stringent control of the manufacture of licence plates.
Aldo Ho-Kong-King, managing director of Drive-A-Matic Car Rentals, operating at Lower Carlton, St James, told the WEEKEND NATION that between April 17 and June 7,three of the company’s Toyota Corollas had been stolen from various locations across the island, all between the hours of 8 p.m. and 2 a.m.
“We’ve had cars stolen in the past, but not to this degree. Maybe one or two over the years,” Ho-Kong-King said.
He added that customers were always told to be careful about where they parked but that in all three cases the cars were in “pretty secure places”.
The businessman said it was not feasible for the company to install tracking devices in vehicles since such services usually cost around $50 per month and he could not afford this for his fleet of 300 cars.
Stating that he believed the cars were being driven with fake licence plates, Ho-Kong-King said proper licence plate controls would reduce not just theft, but also the number of unlicensed drivers.
“Right now nearly anyone can make a licence plate,” he said, noting that very few manufacturers asked for proof of registration.
Furthermore, Ho-Kong-King added that in many countries licence plates were owned by Government, and that drivers who failed to pay the relevant fees were asked to return them.
He said that for the year so far three of his vehicles had been involved in accidents with either uninsured cars or unlicensed drivers, and he suggested that there should be stiffer penalties for people who contravened the Road Traffic Act.
Currently under Section 61(1) of the act “no person shall drive a motor vehicle of any class or description on a road unless he is the holder of a driving licence authorising him to drive a motor vehicle of that class or description”.
Section 61(3) further states that “any person who contravenes this section is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of $1 000 or to imprisonment for a term of 12 months, or both”. (NB)
