The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is planning to work with labs specialized in examining automobile spare parts to provide an independent opinion regarding legal disputes between consumers and car dealers, an informed source said.
The independent labs will submit their technical reports to the ministry’s legal panel, which is authorized to rule on these cases according to the regulations.
The source said the ministry would ensure that the labs have branches across many parts of the country.
The ministry has been using the services of a spare parts testing lab in Jeddah. The lab will initially test brake pads and oil filters to see if they are in compliance with the established standards in Saudi Arabia.
The ministry circulated a memo yesterday stating that it is employing the services of specialized labs to inspect the spare parts of vehicles before they are cleared by the customs.
Moreover, the source revealed that the studies conducted by the ministry indicate that a large number of accidents were caused by faulty brake pads. One such report was conducted by the customs last year and indicated that 45 percent of vehicle spare parts are poorly manufactured or counterfeit. Car dealers also emphasized the fact that around 60 percent of the spare parts in the Kingdom are low quality.
Independent labs to check car spare parts
