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The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) has warned that it will prosecute anyone who attempts to defraud the public using its new e-online registration system.

The system, which has been in place since January 4, this year is aimed at simplifying the processes of registering car.

This is aimed at reducing long hours spent at the offices of the DVLA offices to prevent overcrowding.

The process requires customers to have a Tax Identification Number(TIN), the necessary custom documents, a valid ID card, the car to be registered and also to be present for the registration.

In an exclusive interview with Citi Business News, Regional Manager at the Tema DVLA office Mr. Attah Kumah Mensah said that persons who will try to beat the system will be prosecuted.

“We have never failed to prosecute individuals who are caught engaging in illegal acts that in terms of the car registration process, we just do not make so much noise about it. Going forward, we will continue with prosecutions especially with this new system”.

The system which is currently being piloted at the Tema DVLA office has so far registered 25 cars, of which 24 are private and 1 commercial.

Abigail Apau is a Data Entry Officer at the DVLA office in Tema and explains the process which according to her takes about 4o minutes.

“The system goes through a series of processes, first you will have to present the vehicle to DVLA for customs clearance, technical inspection and identity check,” she said.

“The DVLA officer will then select the appropriate vehicle category and generate an invoice. The next step will be to undergo bio metric capture at DVLA office. A new registration document which includes the certificate and vehicle smart card, the number plate and other documents will be issued,” she added.

Administrator at the office, Vessa Owusu Preprah however says the system has not been without some challenges but assures the DVLA is doing all it can to rectify them.

“Everything has been smooth so far our only challenge is that most of the customers do not want to come to the office themselves but with the system it requires that they be present we are however working to address that issue.”

Speaking to Citi Business News, a customer who used the new system, Yaw expressed his excitement about the platform.

“ I was really surprised at how swift the whole process was because when I compare it to a previous registration I did in 2012 there is a huge difference. This new one took me about thirty minutes but the previous one lasted for about five hours”