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- Jul 18, 2014
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Absolute incompetence rubbish country. Might as well abolish the VEP better.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-vep-singapore-drivers-frustration-johor-4407671
All foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore by land will be required to use a vehicle entry permit (VEP) from Oct 1. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
JOHOR BAHRU: Mr William Khoo is worried that in a few months, he may no longer be able to drive his Singapore-registered car to Johor Bahru, where his child is living with his parents.
Mr Khoo, who is in his 40s, is based in Singapore and works in accounting. He typically drives across the Causeway once a week to be with his family.
However, he told CNA he is facing issues registering his car for a vehicle entry permit (VEP). At the end of last month, Malaysian authorities announced that from Oct 1, all Singapore vehicles entering the country will be required to have registered for the permit.
The process involves the owner of the car registering his details at an online portal before fitting a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag on the car.
Unfortunately for Mr Khoo, he is unable to complete his registration process as his car is already VEP-registered by its previous owner. Mr Khoo purchased the car in 2023 from a secondhand dealer and was not aware that the previous owner did not deregister himself with Malaysian authorities.
He has tried to contact Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ) via multiple emails for more than two weeks, but has yet to receive a response.
“There is no way we can reach out to the previous owner now (to ask the owner to deregister his VEP) because the dealership has strict privacy policies under the Personal Data Protection Act,” said Mr Khoo.
“Of course we feel frustration. JPJ must have a better system to deal with issues like this, like for instance setting aside a specific department to deal with drivers who recently bought secondhand cars and are facing this issue,” he added.
Following the news that Malaysia would be implementing the VEP, numerous drivers like Mr Khoo have struggled with new uncertainty and challenges. CNA received around a dozen emailed queries from readers highlighting issues they face in the registration process.
This came off the back of the Malaysia government’s announcement confirming that the VEP initiative will be enforced from Oct 1 and an FAQ released by JPJ spelling out requirements as well as steps drivers need to take to complete the registration process.
A Facebook post of CNA’s explainer on VEP triggered more than 650 comments and 1,800 shares, with netizens remarking on potential stumbling blocks and raising queries.
Some, like Mr Khoo, had vehicles which were already registered for VEP under previous owners. Meanwhile, others had issues such as the VEP they applied for in 2019 was expiring but there was no option to renew it on the portal.
A VEP application has to be renewed every five years.
Some also indicated that they were not willing to apply because the process required drivers to submit sensitive documents such as a copy of the identity card and certificate of entitlement, citing privacy issues.
Almost all these drivers told CNA that they have reached out to JPJ across various platforms including email as well as social media but they have yet to receive a response.
Yet, a senior official representing TCSens - a vendor hired by JPJ to assist drivers with the installation of RFID stickers and also to handle in-person enquiries on VEPs in Johor Bahru - told CNA that JPJ has been overwhelmed with “thousands of requests” from Singapore drivers facing issues registering.
A technician installing a Vehicle Entry Permit RFID tag on the windshield of a Singapore-registered car. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
The official, who declined to be named, maintained that his team and JPJ are confident they will address all of these queries in time for the Oct 1 deadline.
“Certain users are worried, so they panic and they blame the system. But we will work with them to clear up these concerns,” he added.
Malaysian authorities said that the purpose of the VEP was to tackle car theft and cloning syndicates, and prevent vehicles from leaving the country without paying fines for traffic offences.
Malaysia initially wanted to implement the VEP from October 2019 under then transport minister Liong Tiong Lai. However, the implementation of the scheme has since been delayed several times due to technical issues with the portal and poor implementation at the land checkpoints during a pilot project which resulted in congestion.
The 49-year-old, who is in technical sales, is required to drive from Singapore to parts of Malaysia like Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh once every two weeks to meet clients for his job. Therefore resolving the issue is crucial for his work, he said.
“If you look at the history of how Malaysia keeps wanting to implement VEP, but then keeps postponing, it has been a flop, and this time might be a flop again,” said Mr Lee.
He told CNA that he hopes the deadline is extended beyond Oct 1 so that it gives him more time to contact the car’s previous owner.
“They might extend it one more time or maybe not implement it at all,” he added.
Mr Seah Kim Por, a 71-year-old who is operational director for an electronics firm, told CNA that he had applied for a VEP in 2019, and that it was expiring in October 2024.
He told CNA that the JPJ portal did not offer a section for users to renew the VEP application. He has sent multiple emails to JPJ and has not received any response.
“I was one of the few diligent drivers who applied for it back in 2019 and now, because of this, I might have trouble travelling after October,” he added.
“It should be much easier for me to extend it and not be left to worry about this. You want to implement something but don’t want to make it easy for those who already signed up early on,” said Mr Seah.
Another Singaporean facing issues is Ms Nurliyana Salleh, who is a private-hire car driver. The 34-year-old told CNA that she is unable to register her car because it is leased from a rental company.
“I don’t own the car so my rental company has to do it but they have not done so. I’m not sure how to proceed,” she said, adding that she enters Johor Bahru every week.
CNA contacted some rental companies in Singapore to ask whether they would be applying for VEP on behalf of their clients.
Current Leasing, a firm which rents out to private-hire drivers including from regional platform Gojek, told CNA that only 30 per cent of its hirers enter Malaysia, and it added that it plans to work with JPJ to ensure that drivers who need the VEP will not be inconvenienced.
However, general manager of Current Leasing Shaun Lee told CNA that the process for applying has been difficult because the requirements are “neither robust nor versatile” and as a result, the company has been unable to complete the registration process for its fleet.
Mr Lee explained that for instance, JPJ requires that each vehicle be tied to a TouchNGo e-wallet but this is challenging as the company would be encumbered administratively as they would be required to open an e-wallet account for each car.
“This is not practical as it either means we have to create an equal number of e-wallets as the number of vehicles, or we simply use one e-wallet for all cars and risk not knowing how much each vehicle chalked up,” said Mr Lee.
Singaporeans at the TCSens office at Danga Bay to make enquiries on Vehicle Entry Permit matters. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
Some Singapore drivers have elected to travel physically down to the TCSens office in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru to seek help on issues they face.
When CNA visited the TCsens office on Wednesday (Jun 12) morning, there was a crowd of around 40 people waiting for their turn after collecting a queue ticket.
Mr Jackie Ang speaks to CNA outside the TCSens office at Johor Bahru on Jun 12, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
This included retiree Jackie Ang who told CNA that he would rather officials assist with the installation of RFID stickers because he “wanted to get it done properly”.
Mr Leow speaks to CNA about his experience in registering for the VEP. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
Another driver who wanted to be known only as Mr Leow told CNA the entire process had been “troublesome” as his application via the JPJ portal had initially failed, as he had logged into an old system used for VEP registration.
He told CNA that he also faced technical issues with the new portal which was put forth by JPJ following the Ministry of Transport’s announcement in end-May. It reflected his registration status as submitted, when in fact his application also failed as it contained his vehicle's insurance which had expired, added Mr Leow.
His application eventually went through after he updated his current car insurance details for resubmission. He then decided to travel to the TCSens office on Wednesday to get his RFID sticker installed physically in Johor Bahru, where he had to wait for around an hour before he was attended to.
Mr Leow outlined that the entire process was "complicated" and "confusing" and can be better streamlined.
He said that for the case of drivers with their cars tied to the VEP of a previous owner, they should try to contact the former owner of the dealer to deregister.
Failing this, they should contact JPJ via email or any of the department’s social media platforms to request that the existing VEP be deregistered - by providing the necessary documents - so that they may reapply.
“It’s important that we validate which person is the rightful owner of the car, there are cases where people who don’t own the car apply for a VEP and if we allow this to happen, it will compromise security,” he added.
Additionally, for those seeking to renew their VEP which may be expiring soon, the official said that these drivers will receive an email a month before the expiry and they would be able to renew by following instructions from that email.
He added that TCSens and JPJ were committed to ensure that it addresses all queries, and that it has many open lines of communications including via email, social media accounts and via its hotline.
CNA has sent queries to JPJ and Malaysia’s Ministry of Transport on how it intends to address the issues some of these drivers face and whether it might consider pushing back the implementation beyond Oct 1 to give drivers more time to prepare.
A technician installing Vehicle Entry Permit RFID tag on the windshield. All foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore by land will be required to use a vehicle entry permit (VEP) from Oct 1. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)…see more
Malaysia automotive industry analyst Hezeri Samsuri told CNA that it might be more productive for drivers to come down to the TCSens office in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru to resolve these issues in person as JPJ might be unable to cope with the volume of emails and calls it receives.
“Coming down in person is the best and quickest way to get these matters resolved,” said Mr Hezeri.
He added that Singapore drivers who are not willing to apply for VEP because of the fact that they have to submit a copy of their identity card and COE, must realise that the Singapore government also requires Malaysian motorists to submit similar documents for its VEP and Autopass Card.
Singapore’s Land Transport Authority requires foreign motorists willing to apply for VEP and the Autopass card are required to submit a copy of their identity card or passport as well as a vehicle registration certificate, in addition to other documents.
“We surrender everything when we want to drive into Singapore as well so I don’t see what’s the fuss,” said Mr Hezeri.
“VEP is part of Malaysia’s plan to monitor the quantity of cars in the country for urban planning, and also to safeguard our borders,” he added.
Source: CNA/am(ao)
--------------
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-vep-singapore-drivers-frustration-johor-4407671
'We feel frustration': Singapore drivers face roadblocks in securing Malaysia's VEP
A representative from a vendor hired by the road transport department is confident about the approaching Oct 1 deadline. But some are concerned that Malaysian authorities have not responded to their queries.
All foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore by land will be required to use a vehicle entry permit (VEP) from Oct 1. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
JOHOR BAHRU: Mr William Khoo is worried that in a few months, he may no longer be able to drive his Singapore-registered car to Johor Bahru, where his child is living with his parents.
Mr Khoo, who is in his 40s, is based in Singapore and works in accounting. He typically drives across the Causeway once a week to be with his family.
However, he told CNA he is facing issues registering his car for a vehicle entry permit (VEP). At the end of last month, Malaysian authorities announced that from Oct 1, all Singapore vehicles entering the country will be required to have registered for the permit.
The process involves the owner of the car registering his details at an online portal before fitting a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag on the car.
Unfortunately for Mr Khoo, he is unable to complete his registration process as his car is already VEP-registered by its previous owner. Mr Khoo purchased the car in 2023 from a secondhand dealer and was not aware that the previous owner did not deregister himself with Malaysian authorities.
He has tried to contact Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ) via multiple emails for more than two weeks, but has yet to receive a response.
“There is no way we can reach out to the previous owner now (to ask the owner to deregister his VEP) because the dealership has strict privacy policies under the Personal Data Protection Act,” said Mr Khoo.
“Of course we feel frustration. JPJ must have a better system to deal with issues like this, like for instance setting aside a specific department to deal with drivers who recently bought secondhand cars and are facing this issue,” he added.
Following the news that Malaysia would be implementing the VEP, numerous drivers like Mr Khoo have struggled with new uncertainty and challenges. CNA received around a dozen emailed queries from readers highlighting issues they face in the registration process.
This came off the back of the Malaysia government’s announcement confirming that the VEP initiative will be enforced from Oct 1 and an FAQ released by JPJ spelling out requirements as well as steps drivers need to take to complete the registration process.
A Facebook post of CNA’s explainer on VEP triggered more than 650 comments and 1,800 shares, with netizens remarking on potential stumbling blocks and raising queries.
Some, like Mr Khoo, had vehicles which were already registered for VEP under previous owners. Meanwhile, others had issues such as the VEP they applied for in 2019 was expiring but there was no option to renew it on the portal.
A VEP application has to be renewed every five years.
Some also indicated that they were not willing to apply because the process required drivers to submit sensitive documents such as a copy of the identity card and certificate of entitlement, citing privacy issues.
Almost all these drivers told CNA that they have reached out to JPJ across various platforms including email as well as social media but they have yet to receive a response.
Yet, a senior official representing TCSens - a vendor hired by JPJ to assist drivers with the installation of RFID stickers and also to handle in-person enquiries on VEPs in Johor Bahru - told CNA that JPJ has been overwhelmed with “thousands of requests” from Singapore drivers facing issues registering.
The official, who declined to be named, maintained that his team and JPJ are confident they will address all of these queries in time for the Oct 1 deadline.
“Certain users are worried, so they panic and they blame the system. But we will work with them to clear up these concerns,” he added.
Malaysian authorities said that the purpose of the VEP was to tackle car theft and cloning syndicates, and prevent vehicles from leaving the country without paying fines for traffic offences.
Malaysia initially wanted to implement the VEP from October 2019 under then transport minister Liong Tiong Lai. However, the implementation of the scheme has since been delayed several times due to technical issues with the portal and poor implementation at the land checkpoints during a pilot project which resulted in congestion.
DRIVERS UNABLE TO TROUBLESHOOT PROBLEMS
Like Mr Khoo, Singaporean Ben Lee is also unable to apply for a used car he purchased in 2022 for VEP because it was registered under a previous owner in the system.The 49-year-old, who is in technical sales, is required to drive from Singapore to parts of Malaysia like Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh once every two weeks to meet clients for his job. Therefore resolving the issue is crucial for his work, he said.
“If you look at the history of how Malaysia keeps wanting to implement VEP, but then keeps postponing, it has been a flop, and this time might be a flop again,” said Mr Lee.
He told CNA that he hopes the deadline is extended beyond Oct 1 so that it gives him more time to contact the car’s previous owner.
“They might extend it one more time or maybe not implement it at all,” he added.
Mr Seah Kim Por, a 71-year-old who is operational director for an electronics firm, told CNA that he had applied for a VEP in 2019, and that it was expiring in October 2024.
He told CNA that the JPJ portal did not offer a section for users to renew the VEP application. He has sent multiple emails to JPJ and has not received any response.
“I was one of the few diligent drivers who applied for it back in 2019 and now, because of this, I might have trouble travelling after October,” he added.
“It should be much easier for me to extend it and not be left to worry about this. You want to implement something but don’t want to make it easy for those who already signed up early on,” said Mr Seah.
Another Singaporean facing issues is Ms Nurliyana Salleh, who is a private-hire car driver. The 34-year-old told CNA that she is unable to register her car because it is leased from a rental company.
“I don’t own the car so my rental company has to do it but they have not done so. I’m not sure how to proceed,” she said, adding that she enters Johor Bahru every week.
CNA contacted some rental companies in Singapore to ask whether they would be applying for VEP on behalf of their clients.
Current Leasing, a firm which rents out to private-hire drivers including from regional platform Gojek, told CNA that only 30 per cent of its hirers enter Malaysia, and it added that it plans to work with JPJ to ensure that drivers who need the VEP will not be inconvenienced.
However, general manager of Current Leasing Shaun Lee told CNA that the process for applying has been difficult because the requirements are “neither robust nor versatile” and as a result, the company has been unable to complete the registration process for its fleet.
Mr Lee explained that for instance, JPJ requires that each vehicle be tied to a TouchNGo e-wallet but this is challenging as the company would be encumbered administratively as they would be required to open an e-wallet account for each car.
“This is not practical as it either means we have to create an equal number of e-wallets as the number of vehicles, or we simply use one e-wallet for all cars and risk not knowing how much each vehicle chalked up,” said Mr Lee.
Singaporeans at the TCSens office at Danga Bay to make enquiries on Vehicle Entry Permit matters. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
Some Singapore drivers have elected to travel physically down to the TCSens office in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru to seek help on issues they face.
When CNA visited the TCsens office on Wednesday (Jun 12) morning, there was a crowd of around 40 people waiting for their turn after collecting a queue ticket.
Mr Jackie Ang speaks to CNA outside the TCSens office at Johor Bahru on Jun 12, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
This included retiree Jackie Ang who told CNA that he would rather officials assist with the installation of RFID stickers because he “wanted to get it done properly”.
Mr Leow speaks to CNA about his experience in registering for the VEP. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)
Another driver who wanted to be known only as Mr Leow told CNA the entire process had been “troublesome” as his application via the JPJ portal had initially failed, as he had logged into an old system used for VEP registration.
He told CNA that he also faced technical issues with the new portal which was put forth by JPJ following the Ministry of Transport’s announcement in end-May. It reflected his registration status as submitted, when in fact his application also failed as it contained his vehicle's insurance which had expired, added Mr Leow.
His application eventually went through after he updated his current car insurance details for resubmission. He then decided to travel to the TCSens office on Wednesday to get his RFID sticker installed physically in Johor Bahru, where he had to wait for around an hour before he was attended to.
Mr Leow outlined that the entire process was "complicated" and "confusing" and can be better streamlined.
VEP TO SAFEGUARD MALAYSIA’S BORDERS: TRANSPORT ANALYST
The official from TCSens told CNA that JPJ is willing to provide solutions for these issues.He said that for the case of drivers with their cars tied to the VEP of a previous owner, they should try to contact the former owner of the dealer to deregister.
Failing this, they should contact JPJ via email or any of the department’s social media platforms to request that the existing VEP be deregistered - by providing the necessary documents - so that they may reapply.
“It’s important that we validate which person is the rightful owner of the car, there are cases where people who don’t own the car apply for a VEP and if we allow this to happen, it will compromise security,” he added.
Additionally, for those seeking to renew their VEP which may be expiring soon, the official said that these drivers will receive an email a month before the expiry and they would be able to renew by following instructions from that email.
He added that TCSens and JPJ were committed to ensure that it addresses all queries, and that it has many open lines of communications including via email, social media accounts and via its hotline.
CNA has sent queries to JPJ and Malaysia’s Ministry of Transport on how it intends to address the issues some of these drivers face and whether it might consider pushing back the implementation beyond Oct 1 to give drivers more time to prepare.
A technician installing Vehicle Entry Permit RFID tag on the windshield. All foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore by land will be required to use a vehicle entry permit (VEP) from Oct 1. (Photo: CNA/Zamzahuri Abas)…see more
Malaysia automotive industry analyst Hezeri Samsuri told CNA that it might be more productive for drivers to come down to the TCSens office in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru to resolve these issues in person as JPJ might be unable to cope with the volume of emails and calls it receives.
“Coming down in person is the best and quickest way to get these matters resolved,” said Mr Hezeri.
He added that Singapore drivers who are not willing to apply for VEP because of the fact that they have to submit a copy of their identity card and COE, must realise that the Singapore government also requires Malaysian motorists to submit similar documents for its VEP and Autopass Card.
Singapore’s Land Transport Authority requires foreign motorists willing to apply for VEP and the Autopass card are required to submit a copy of their identity card or passport as well as a vehicle registration certificate, in addition to other documents.
“We surrender everything when we want to drive into Singapore as well so I don’t see what’s the fuss,” said Mr Hezeri.
“VEP is part of Malaysia’s plan to monitor the quantity of cars in the country for urban planning, and also to safeguard our borders,” he added.
Source: CNA/am(ao)
--------------
