On Thursday 2 December, the European Commission announced that it had sent a reasoned opinion to Italy for failing to apply the rules on type-approval of vehicles with regard to emissions (laid down in Regulation 715/2007).
Indeed, Member States are required to define and implement rules on penalties for the use of defeat devices that undermine the reliability of type-approval results, such as the use of software that detects a typical test laboratory environment to restrict vehicle engines.
However, although Italy has ordered the mandatory recall of the vehicles concerned, it has still not applied the national provisions on penalties in cases where such defeat devices have been installed on vehicles type-approved in Italy, according to the guardian of the European Treaties.
The European Commission opened an infringement proceeding against Italy on 17 May 2017. Italy now has two months to respond and take the necessary measures, failing which the European Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
As a reminder, in March 2017, the European Parliament’s board of inquiry into the vehicle emissions fraud scandal (EMIS) suggested the establishment of a European car monitoring agency to ensure better enforcement of EU rules (see EUROPE 11735/3). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)