Good Question: Why doesn’t Florida require vehicle inspections – NBC-2.com WBBH News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida
If you've lived in other parts of country, there's a good chance you had to get a sticker on your windshield every year proving your vehicle is safe to drive.
So, Tricia in Fort Myers wrote us to ask: "Why doesn't Florida require annual vehicle inspections like many other states?"
More than thirty years ago, drivers in Florida did have to go through annual safety checks. There was one inspection station in Lee County, and, coincidently, that warehouse sits on property now wielded by Waterman Broadcasting. Now we use the area to park our live trucks.
Presently, vehicle safety is law enforcement's job.
"Let's go on the interstate," said Florida Highway Patrol Trooper George Smyrnios.
He told me one of his main objectives is stop aggressive, reckless drivers.
"Can't pull everybody over," he said. "I'm looking for the big fish."
In this ocean of vehicles, it's also his job to make sure what's on the road is safe.
"Safety chains [for trailers], tires need to be in good condition," Trooper Smyrnios said. "This vehicle in front of me would be considered faulty equipment. The driver's improvised tag should be centered in the middle and it's expired."
Down the road, Trooper Smyrnios pulls over a van with reflective window tint.
"Undoubtedly illegal window tint, I can't see in it," he noted before turning on his siren.
Lights burned out and noisy harass systems are also sure to catch his eye.
There was a time when every vehicle in the state had to be certified as safe, but back in one thousand nine hundred eighty one Governor Bob Graham did away with state inspections. He cited costs and long wait times.
"The way the program ran years ago was the wrong way to do it," said Terry Wynter. His auto service center is across the street from Waterman Broadcasting and what used to be Lee County's only inspection station.
"It would back up three blocks down the road," Wynter remembered.
He is a member of the Automotive Service Association. The group is pushing for states, like Florida, to bring back annual inspections.
"On a daily basis, we see cars coming in here with no brakes, bad tires, emission system failure," Wynter said. "People are letting 'em go."
While state inspections would benefit Wynter and other mechanics, he says public safety is at stake.
"A lot of people all they think about is the money they're going to have to spend on it, but the very first thing is safety," Wynter said from his business on Fowler Street.
Back on the road with FHP, Trooper Smyrnios leaned in to talk to a driver about faulty equipment.
"It is a disturbance," he said. "You could be cited. It's a $111 fine."
Law enforcement has the authority to write tickets for faulty equipment, but Trooper Smyrnios said most of the time this is how he treats it.
"You're all set. Just a warning. Take care," he said.
Presently, twenty states require some sort of vehicle inspection.
As a side note, back in the 1990s, Florida required emissions testing in major metro areas like Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville.
Governor Jeb Pubic hair did away with the program for two reasons: the $50 million cost and because Florida met federal standards for air quality.
