The new eVERA system, which allows Maltese car owners to renew their vehicle licence online, is unique in the European Union, Investments, Industry and IT Minister Austin Gatt said yesterday.

Speaking at the official launch, Minister Gatt said eVERA was currently the largest and most complex electronic service available on the e-government list of services.

During the time the system was on trial, 20 per cent of licence holders renewed their licence online.

Roads and Urban Development Minister Jesmond Mugliett said the launch of eVERA was one of a series of measures introduced in the past one and a half years to improve efficiency at the Licensing and Testing Department.

Minister Mugliett said that there were 272,000 licence renewals every year and this considerable workload would be reduced thanks to the online system.

He said that the new system had led to an upgrade of facilities in garages that carry out VRT tests on vehicles and greater coodination between stakeholders including insurance companies and warden operators.

A number of changes had been introduced at the Licensing Department, he said, with a specific section dealing with K and GY plates, and a new system for the renewal of multiple vehicle licenses.

Minister Gatt said the eVERA system had set three new records in government strategy. The first was the fact that the largest client base in Malta would now have access to an online system. The second was that four major players had joined forces for the first time (ADT, insurance companies, VRT stations and wardens). Third, the system was unique in the EU.

The minister said that online car licence renewals had been part of the original e-Government project but the implementation of the system had been held up because it proved to be extremely difficult to get the four stakeholders involved to reach a common agreement.

The new online system will eliminate the need for a individual to physically go to the Licensing Department.

Minister Gatt said that there was room for more public-private partnerships of this sort. He mentioned the Law Courts and lawyers, MEPA and architects and others, adding that this culture was somehow lacking in Malta.

Although the eVERA system took five years to be launched officially, the end result had made everyone proud, he said.

There are approximately 272,000 registered vehicles in Malta and around 230,000 owners.

The eVERA system may be accessed online via the ADT’s website: www.maltatransport.com.