Following reports that the European Commission has signalled to a trade body that the motor vehicle block exemption regulations will be extended over EU member states for five years beyond the current 2023 expiry, the IAAF has expressed concern over an apparent lack of desire from the UK government to follow suit.
“I think that it is still unclear at this stage whether the UK Government sees the need to have sector specific legislation beyond the more generic BER requirements, but time is becoming a key issue” IAAF Chief Executive Mark Field told us, adding that formal discussions are yet to begin, even though organisations, including UK AFCAR which was set up just to act on block exemption, have been pressing for open dialogue.
READ: ECP BOSS WARNS OF BLOCK EXEMPTION ‘EXISTENTIAL THREAT’
Field also expressed concern that VMs are against the ‘spirit’ of block exemption, even as the rules stand at the moment. “In one case, a vehicle suffered a turbo failure and the dealership refused to even look at the vehicle because its previous service was carried out by the independent aftermarket and includes the use of fuel treatments”, he said. “Current block exemption regulations make clear that the ‘burden of proof’ is with the VM and to not even investigate the cause of the failure is not in the spirit of the legislation”.
The European Commission reportedly informed representatives from trade body FIGIFA late last year that BER will be extened in member states until 2028, although this is not yet official policy.
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