By MP for Aljunied GRC, Sylvia Lim
[Delivered in Committee of Supply on 11 March 2015]
According to the website of LTA, a COE represents a right to vehicle ownership and use of the limited road space for 10 years. Thus, there are two aspects to the COE – the right to own the vehicle as well as the road usage.
Since road usage is part of the rationale for COEs, there is a case for looking into how we could make the system fairer for those who currently have vehicles that are under-utilised and are seeking to extend their COEs for the same vehicle. I have in mind retirees who use their cars only to send disabled spouses to medical check-ups or to ferry their grandchildren to and from school. As these vehicle owners no longer earn an income, they are now faced with giving up their vehicles when their COEs expire, due to the high COE prices. This decision is painful as it would mean they can no longer contribute to their family lives the way they used to.
I would like to ask MOT to look into the possibility of giving vehicle owners renewing their COEs for the same vehicle a rebate or concession, if their usage of the vehicle in the first 10 years is below a threshold and the COE renewed is not transferable. There would also be a corresponding need to also ensure that odometers recording mileages are not tampered with, which would at the same time be a good safeguard for consumers of used cars.