§ 1222. Inspection of registered vehicles

(a) Except for school buses, which shall be inspected as prescribed in section 1282 of this title, and motor buses as defined in subdivision 4(17) of this title, which shall be inspected twice during the calendar year at six-month intervals, all motor vehicles registered in this State shall undergo a safety and visual emissions inspection once each year and all motor vehicles that are registered in this State and are 16 model years old or less shall undergo an emissions or on board diagnostic (OBD) systems inspection once each year as applicable. Any motor vehicle, trailer, or semi-trailer not currently inspected in this State shall be inspected within 15 days following the date of its registration in the State of Vermont.

(b)(1) The inspections shall be made at garages or qualified service stations, designated by the Commissioner as inspection stations, for the purpose of determining whether those motor vehicles are properly equipped and maintained in good mechanical condition; provided, however, the scope of the safety inspection of a motor vehicle other than a school bus or a commercial motor vehicle shall be limited to parts or systems that are relevant to the vehicle's safe operation, and such vehicles shall not fail the safety portion of the inspection unless the condition of the part or system poses or may pose a danger to the operator or to other highway users.

(2) The charges for such inspections made by garages or qualified service stations designated to conduct periodic inspections shall be subject to the approval of the Commissioner. If a fee is charged for inspection, it shall be based upon the hourly rate charged by each official inspection station or it may be a flat rate fee and, in either instance, the fee shall be prominently posted and displayed beside the official inspection station certificate. In addition, the official inspection station may disclose the State inspection certificate charge on the repair order as a separate item and collect the charge from the consumer.

(c) A person shall not operate a motor vehicle unless it has been inspected as required by this section and has a valid certification of inspection affixed to it. A person shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $5.00, which penalty shall be exempt from surcharges under 13 V.S.A. § 7282(a), if he or she is cited for a violation of this section within the 14 days following expiration of the motor vehicle inspection sticker. The month of next inspection for all motor vehicles shall be shown on the current inspection certificate affixed to the vehicle.

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, an exhibition vehicle of model year 1940 or before registered as prescribed in section 373 of this title or a trailer registered as prescribed in subdivision 371(a)(1)(A) of this title shall be exempt from inspection; provided, however, the vehicle must be equipped as originally manufactured, must be in good mechanical condition, and must meet the applicable standards of the inspection manual.

[Subsection (e) repealed effective July 1, 2020.]

(e) A vehicle used as a mail carrier under a contract with the U.S. Postal Service shall not fail inspection solely because, in converting the vehicle to be a right-hand drive vehicle, the right air bag in the front compartment has been disconnected or a nonfactory disconnect switch has been installed to disable the air bag. (Amended 1967, No. 67; 1967, No. 104, § 1; 1969, No. 143, § 3; 1969, No. 299 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1971; 1977, No. 20, § 6; 1993, No. 64, § 3; 1997, No. 32, § 3; 2003, No. 118 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2005, No. 80, § 55; 2009, No. 152 (Adj. Sess.), § 15; 2011, No. 62, § 38; 2017, No. 71, § 27, eff. June 8, 2017; 2017, No. 158 (Adj. Sess.), § 41, eff. May 21, 2018; 2017, No. 206 (Adj. Sess.), § 22, eff. May 30, 2018; 2019, No. 59, § 44, eff. June 14, 2019; 2019, No. 60, § 33.)