About 5,000 MoT tests have been cancelled so far across NI after cracks were detected in vehicle lifts.
Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon told BBC Radio Ulster she was taking steps to minimise disruption and ensure the situation “cannot happen again”.
She said drivers affected by MoT test cancellations would be automatically issued with a temporary exemption certificates, valid for four months.
The only exceptions are taxi drivers and people with four-year-old vehicles.
Ms Mallon explained she could not issue exemptions for four-year-old vehicles “because they have never had an MoT certificate, so there is no certificate to extend”.’
The minister added that taxis “do not fall within the legislation to be issued with temporary exemption certificates, because they are subject to a PSV [Public service vehicle] test”.
