Safety Inspections

[Morris Minor]

We don't have them here in GA. All we have is annual emission checks on cars > 3 years-old... and that's just in Atlanta & its 13 metro-area counties.
Where I grew up in the UK, there's been an "MOT" safety inspection since I can remember: it's thorough, & without a pass you can't get the road tax decal & have to take the car off the road

I know only only a small minority of crashes are caused by defective vehicles, but still... I occasionally see some bald-tired one-headlighted horrors on the roads here.

This is interesting... driver was drunk and jailed. But they also went after the owner... who had got an MOT pass but ignored the warning that tread depth was at the limit.

Driver who failed to replace worn tyres before fatal crash is jailed in landmark case
Henry Reynolds was warned his rear tyres were near the legal limit but continued to drive a further 7,000 miles on them.
More...
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/12/20/driver-failed-replace-worn-tyres-fatal-crash-jailed-landmark/

[Soup DeVille]

Statistically here, its been shown that there is no safety advantage between states with relatively strict inspection laws and those with no inspections at all. Sure, sometimes you see some scary looking stuff, but the statistics show that they're not a real concern.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Statistically here, its been shown that there is no safety advantage between states with relatively strict inspection laws and those with no inspections at all. Sure, sometimes you see some scary looking stuff, but the statistics show that they're not a real concern.

Sometimes statistics do good.
CT used to have inspections 20 years ago, but now it's just emissions for vehicles newer than 20 years. So my Jeep is free and clear, although I bet it would pass with flying colours.

As a mechanic, I have absolutely zero interest in performing state inspections. I do my own inspection of every vehicle that comes my way, anyway. That's how I make a living.

[AutobahnSHO]

I'd bet 99+% of wrecks are driver error with no mechanical issues...

[JWC]

We have an annual safety check...and in some counties a required emissions test to go along with check. My county used to do both, but has been moved off of the "smog" list and we only do safety inspections once again. A safety inspection runs $13.25 and is by demand. You can make an appointment for someone, but if they walk-in you can't refuse them...within reason. I refused an undercover inspector once, but instead of writing up the dealership, he flipped out his badge and told me "you will do an inspection". Seems he had a quota he hadn't yet met. But, since it five minutes to closing; all the mechanics had locked up or gone; and I'd have to back five cars out to do the inspection I still said no.

I still got in trouble with the dealership owner.