Walloon mobility minister François Desquesnes (centrist/Les Engagés) has asked his administration to draw up concrete measures to curb the influx of Flemish and Brussels motorists attending car inspection centres in Wallonia. Car inspection centres in that region appear to be swamped by “inspection tourists” from Flanders and Brussels.
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Does it make sense to present your car at the car inspection in Wallonia?
Colin Clapson
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Does it make sense to have your car inspected in Wallonia? The Flemish Ombudsman answers 3 questions about “inspection tourism” in Belgium.
Where should you get your car inspected?
Although roadworthiness testing is the responsibility of the regions, people are free to choose where to have their vehicle checked. "Residents of Ghent can have their car checked in Hasselt, for example. But Flemish and Brussels residents can also present their car in Wallonia, without any problems," explains Peter De Ryck, researcher specialising in mobility at the Flemish Ombudsman's Office.
The only restriction to this is that for a re-inspection - where only defects from the previous inspection are checked and you therefore have to pay less - you have to return to the same centre again. But you can get around that too. It is possible to make a new attempt at a different inspection station after a rejection, although you then have to pay the cost of a full inspection.
In principle, you have to present your vehicle at the car inspection every 1 to 2 years, depending on the age of your car. You can check which period applies to your car on the Flemish Government website (Dutch).
Why choose a Walloon inspection station?
In July 2022, Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels jointly introduced a new check on emissions for the latest diesel vehicles, a new soot test.
The so-called particle counter counts the number of soot particles in the exhaust and thus checks whether the particulate filter is still working properly. The classic soot test was no longer able to detect the small soot particles emitted by the newest Euronorm 5 and 6 diesel engines.
Only, the modalities of that test differ between the regions. Diesel engines with Euronorm 5a - vehicles registered before 2013 - are not subjected to the new soot test in Wallonia. In Flanders and Brussels they are.
The different way of working means that at some inspection stations on regional borders over a quarter of customers are presenting from domiciles in Flanders and Brussels.
"It makes some sense for drivers driving around with a diesel with Euronorm 5a to have their car tested in Wallonia. For cars of that type, the risk of rejection is lower due to the lack of the test," Mr De Ryck says.
Inspection tourism from Wallonia to Flanders also exists, the researcher continues. "In Flanders you can attend an inspection station without an appointment. In the southern half of the country this is not possible. That also makes the Flemish inspection centres more attractive for Walloon drivers and leads to inspection tourism in the other direction."
Are checks in Wallonia less strict?
No, it is not the case that Walloon car inspectors turn a blind eye to drivers from Flanders and Brussels. ‘Apart from the soot test, the same rules apply across the country,’ Mr De Ryck insists.
"Cars whose brakes are out of order, or whose tyres are worn out, should be tested in the same way everywhere. That applies to lights, chassis and so on. So it also makes no sense to present your car in Wallonia if your rear lights, for example, are not in order, hoping they will let you through."