Malaysians can now inspect their cars for ownership transfer at places other than Puspakom.
For as long as most Malaysians can remember, transferring ownership of a used car has almost always involved a trip to Puspakom. And depending on who you ask, that process typically involves a long wait, not to mention the potential of some money unofficially changing hands somewhere along the line…
Happily however, those days may finally be coming to an end. Such is as the government has since officially opened up private vehicle ownership transfer inspections (MV15, previously known as B5) to several new operators, effectively ending Puspakom’s decades-long monopoly on the service.
Among the first six companies granted licences to carry out these inspections are Carsome Academy Sdn Bhd, Car Medic Sdn Bhd, Beriman Gold Sdn Bhd and Carro Technology Sdn Bhd, with more operators expected to enter the market in the coming years.
Now as before, the inspection itself will still involve checks on the vehicle’s chassis number, engine number, tinted glass compliance and whether the car has ever been structurally tampered with or dismantled. The process meanwhile remains government-regulated too, with fees still fixed at RM30 and the total amount payable coming to RM37.80 inclusive of SST and processing charges.
What the introduction of multiple operators should help with however is significantly reducing waiting times. Newer inspection centres are reportedly capable of handling the process much quicker than before, with the inspection itself taking around 10 minutes and the entire process completed within 15 to 20 minutes. All centres are additionally integrated directly with JPJ’s MySIKAP system, allowing results to be uploaded instantly for faster ownership transfer processing.
This move should also improve convenience considerably, simply by giving motorists far more locations to choose from. After all, anyone who has recently attempted to book a Puspakom inspection appointment would likely know how arduous the process can sometimes be, with certain branches reportedly booked out weeks in advance.
There is also admittedly another rather large elephant in the room here to touch on too. With more operators now entering the space and inspections no longer concentrated under a single monopoly, there is hopefully less room for the sort of questionable practices that have long surrounded the system.
And finally finishing on something slightly off-topic, this entire shake-up should maybe also encourage the government to revisit Malaysia’s admittedly rather archaic vehicle inspection concept as a whole. While some may perhaps grimace at the thought, this could potentially pave the way for a more comprehensive annual roadworthiness inspection system similar to what exists in the UK or Japan. If implemented properly, such a move could genuinely improve vehicle safety standards nationwide.
Of course, if Malaysia does eventually head in that direction, then our vehicle modification laws would probably need a serious rethink as well. It would certainly be nice to see clearer and more sensible pathways introduced for things like EV conversions, properly-engineered engine swaps and other enthusiast modifications to exist legally and safely on Malaysian roads. Beyond simply benefiting enthusiasts too, such a move could help encourage more local engineering ingenuity and automotive creativity overall.
Though admittedly, all that is probably a much larger discussion for another day.
