EU agrees 12-month "end of series" extension for 2020 Euro 4 models
Brussels based international motorcycle industry trade association ACEM has welcomed the positive votes of the EU Council and Parliament on the revision of Euro 4 "end of series" provisions.
"The motorcycle industry in Europe welcomes the recent decision by the Council of the EU and the European Parliament to endorse the European Commission's proposal adapting the rules on end of series vehicles in EU Regulation 168/2013".
The amendment will give motorcycle dealers and companies across Europe, who have seen sales of Euro 4 units affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a 12-month extension to 31 December 2021 to sell their stock of Euro 4 vehicles before a delayed final implementation of Euro 5 on January 1 2022.
The proposal, supported by the two legislative bodies, will cover only the vehicles that were in stock at the moment when national lockdowns were introduced across the EU. More specifically, the amount of vehicles benefiting from the revised end of series measures will not exceed the number of Euro 4 L-category vehicles in stock in the EU on 15 March 2020, which was estimated by industry experts at around 550,000 units.
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Antonio Perlot, ACEM Secretary General: "The motorcycle sector thanks European Commission's President von der Leyen as well as Commissioner Breton and his team at DG GROW for their decisive political dealership and swift response to this crisis." |
Under EU type approval rules, all Euro 4 motorcycles needed to be registered before the application of the environmental Euro 5 step on 1 January 2021. This requirement was impossible to achieve as a result of the drop in sales caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
EU type approval rules foresaw a flexibility mechanism called "end of series", which allowed manufacturers to continue making available on the market, register or enter into service a limited part of their stock of Euro 4 vehicles. However, this flexibility clause was not sufficient to address the problem of extra vehicle stock created by the sudden outbreak of the virus.
The political agreement reached by the two European legislators will help motorcycle companies and dealers to better face these troublesome times.
It is worth emphasizing that the amendment to the end of series provisions in EU Regulation 168/2013 will not affect the original timeline foreseen for the introduction of the Euro 5 standard, i.e. 1 January 2021, for existing moped and motorcycle models type approved before 1 January 2020.
Commenting on the political agreement reached by the EU institutions, Antonio Perlot, ACEM Secretary General, said: "ACEM welcomes the positive vote of the Council and the European Parliament on this important legislative file. The amendment to EU Regulation 168/2013 will help those manufacturers in need of specific support and will help to bridge the gap towards Euro 5. The new rules will also provide a much needed 'safety net' for the entire sector, including downstream dealerships, and will prevent the unnecessary scrapping of Euro 4 vehicles.
"Over the coming months, ACEM, but most importantly - as since day one - the sector's national associations will continue working constructively with public authorities to ensure that the new end of series rules support manufacturing in Europe and dealerships in these challenging times."
