The after-effects of the Covid19 pandemic coupled with a shortage of skilled workers and a drop in the car driving licence age to 17 have meant that Swiss road traffic authorities simply can't keep up with demand.
Their backlog rate has more than tripled since 2020.
This means that more than 500,000 vehicles are still waiting to be called up for inspection and are driving on Swiss roads without a current MFK, according to figures from the Association of Road Traffic Authorities (ASA), news website 20 Minuten reported.
The ASA are responsible for the MFK and typically post an inspection summons letter to vehicle users every few years.
"The aim is to bring the backlog of vehicle inspections back to a normal level, but some cantons lack the necessary resources, both in terms of infrastructure and personnel," said ASA managing director Sven Britschgi.
The rising number of vehicles and the increasing average age of vehicles are making the situation even more difficult.
But this doesn't mean these vehicles are any more dangerous than those that have been inspected. Legally, all vehicle owners in Switzerland are responsible for keeping their cars in a safe operating condition.
READ ALSO: 'Clean the car' - What you need to know about Swiss vehicle inspection rules
And accidents due to technical problems or insufficient maintenance account for less than one percent of all accidents in Switzerland, according to the Federal Roads Office (astra).
SVP want longer intervals between inspections
To remedy the situation, politicians from Switzerland's largest party, the populist Swiss People's Party (SVP), are calling for longer intervals between compulsory inspections – contrary to EU guidelines.
"The current inspection frenzy is often just a money-making scheme," said SVP national councillor Christian Imark.
In Switzerland, initial inspections are carried out five (or six at the latest) years after the vehicle is put into service. The second inspection takes place three years after the first and then every subsequent inspection is done at two-year intervals.
"Every inspection involves a lot of unnecessary effort and bureaucracy, which raises the question of whether this effort is justified," said Imark, adding that many defects found during vehicle inspection are not safety-related.
And Thomas Hurter, SVP national councillor and president of the Swiss Automobile Club and the Automobile Trade Association, says that the frequency of inspections should depend on the age of the vehicle and its technical standard.
But the Federal Roads Office says that it's not that simple as the EU already has shorter intervals than Switzerland.
"If Switzerland were to extend the intervals even further, the EU would certainly not understand this," the office said.
But Imark believes the EU law is excessive and that Switzerland should extend the intervals without consulting the EU.
"We shouldn't wake sleeping dogs... we ourselves know better what is right for safety in Swiss road traffic," he said.
But Green party councillor Marionna Schlatter wants to stick to the current intervals because "it's also about the emissions that we want to control through the inspection scheme, for example with exhaust gas testing," she said.
Let us know in the comments: are you waiting to hear about your MFK inspection?
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