Sask. Opposition calls for SGI to scrap inspection requirement for out-of-province vehicles

Saskatchewan's Opposition NDP is calling on the provincial government to drop the requirement for used vehicles bought outside of the province to be inspected before they can be registered.

"If a vehicle is insured and deemed roadworthy in another province, that should be enough to get it on the road here," Hugh Gordon, the NDP's critic for SGI, said on Thursday.

"It makes no sense that a driver who finds a great deal on a vehicle should face extra costs and red tape."

Currently, if a used vehicle is bought outside of Saskatchewan, it must pass inspection at a Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) approved station before it can be registered and issued auto insurance.

The inspection cost varies on the size of the vehicle and its condition. According to Jarrod Callan from Midas Auto in Regina, the typical cost is just under $200.

Callan said he is very against the NDP's proposed rule change.

"I think there should be more safety, not less," he said, noting that in Manitoba, an inspection is required before someone can sell any vehicle regardless of origin.

In a statement, SGI said the inspections are crucial to ensuring road safety and reducing the risk of fraud. It noted that such inspections are mandatory in all other provinces.

"Mandatory vehicle inspections also ensure that rebuilt total-loss vehicles (and vehicles involved in unreported collisions in another jurisdiction) are properly repaired before returning to the road," it said.

"If Saskatchewan were to become the only province in Canada to eliminate the requirement, this could result in our province being used as the entry point for unsafe or stolen vehicles to be registered here by unscrupulous people and then put back on the market."

According to SGI, 32,200 inspections of non-commercial light vehicles bought outside Saskatchewan were done in 2024. That was a slight increase for 31,500 inspections in 2023.

Saskatchewan's inspection requirement doesn't apply to used vehicles bought within the province. The NDP said this means it's an unnecessary barrier to interprovincial trade.

"Right now if you buy a 2024 vehicle in Medicine Hat or Brandon, you have to pay out of pocket for mechanical inspection before SGI will insure," Gordon said. "But you can buy a 20-year-old junker in the province, walk into SGI with a bill of sale and they'll register it no problem. That makes no sense."

The NDP cited a recent study by the MacDonald Laurier Institute that found Canada's GDP could be boosted by up to $18.1 billion if Saskatchewan were to sign a mutual recognition agreement with Alberta. Such an agreement would make qualifications and certifications granted in one province apply equally in the other.

"We keep hearing about the need to strengthen Canada's economy and reduce internal trade barriers. This is one simple concrete step Saskatchewan can take right now," NDP trade and export development critic Kim Breckner said.