Yet another complaint has emerged against the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), this time by the Licence Plate Association of South Africa (Laza), which has alleged a series of systemic regulatory failures and inconsistent enforcement by the SABS in the number plate manufacturing and embossing industry.

A detailed breakdown of the complaints and evidence provided by Laza, which has been seen by Engineering News, outlines a pattern of alleged noncompliance, monopolistic practices, and a breakdown in oversight mechanisms critical to the integrity of vehicle identification systems in South Africa.

The complaints primarily involved the SABS’s alleged breaches of South Africa’s number plate industry governance standards, notably South African National Standard (SANS) 1116, which sets out the technical and quality requirements for number plates.

These standards are intended to ensure uniformity, durability, traceability and fraud prevention.

The regulatory landscape also includes Gazetted provisions that explicitly prohibit manufacturers from operating as embossers or registering as motor vehicle dealers.

Additionally, the complaints made against the SABS relate to Laza being denied public access to regulatory records. Under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), access to regulatory records may be requested of public bodies, including audit reports and permit registers, which are central to ensuring transparency and accountability in regulated industries.

In the complaint, Laza alleged that the SABS failed to enforce its own standards by permitting or failing to act against a growing number of manufacturers and embossers who operate outside of legal parameters.

On September 14, 2023, Laza claimed that the SABS had acknowledged that one company was not legally recognised under existing standards, yet took no legal or regulatory action against manufacturers that were allegedly supplying embossers operating under that company’s label.

The company, which is an entity owned and managed by a former SABS employee is alleged to issue certificates to licence plate manufacturers; however, the certificates do not correspond to any officially recognised certification within the South African number plate manufacturing and embossing industry.

Further, Laza has claimed that, dating back to March 29, 2022, some manufacturers were acting as embossers or had installed embossing equipment directly at motor vehicle dealerships, contrary to the Gazetted prohibition.

This practice, Laza argued, enabled manufacturers to bypass the independent embosser market and allegedly contributed to the marginalisation of smaller businesses.

Particular concern was raised about a dominant entity in the downstream sector. Laza noted that the entity’s acquisition of a competitor in December 2017 further consolidated its market position, potentially breaching competition norms.

The report accused the SABS of failing to conduct regular audits of manufacturers as required. Despite embossers paying monthly fees and application charges to maintain their permits, Laza alleged that no corresponding quality inspections were being enforced, undermining consumer protection and fair market standards.

It was further claimed that competition among manufacturers had led to a decline in quality control practices, including improper application of luminous backing tapes and watermark inconsistencies, thereby compromising the integrity of vehicle identification.

On November 27, 2024, Laza submitted a PAIA request for access to records on registered and cancelled embossers in Gauteng, along with the SABS inspectorate audit reports. This request was allegedly denied, raising concerns about the transparency of regulatory processes.

The complaint also pointed to the SABS’s handling of permit fee relief requests by embossers from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. Despite their participation in government technical committees, Laza reported that these embossers received no meaningful engagement or payment plan proposals from the SABS.

In some cases, permits were cancelled without direct communication, causing financial and operational hardship, the association alleges.

Additional concerns were raised about the security of permit decals, which Laza described as “easy to replicate and remove”. This vulnerability, combined with unregulated suppliers operating outside official standards, was said to present a risk to law enforcement and public safety.

The issues raised by Laza highlight concerns about regulatory integrity within South Africa’s vehicle identification framework. If substantiated, the allegations suggest a systemic failure in enforcing legal standards, enabling potentially fraudulent activities, and disadvantaging compliant industry participants.

Beyond industry dynamics, the allegations raise broader concerns about the effectiveness of the SABS as a statutory body tasked with safeguarding public interest through standardisation.

In response to Laza’s allegations, the SABS told Engineering News that it conducts the certification of number plates according to the standards applicable to number plates.

“The complaints against the SABS are oblivious to the fact that number plates are regulated by the Department of Transport (DoT) and that the SABS is providing certification services as mandated by regulations. The complaint is further convoluting issues of enforcement and competition without providing a factually correct context that is aligned to the mandate of the SABS, the DoT and Competition authorities,” the bureau said.

Laza’s complaints come as the SABS is under investigation for numerous allegations of corruption and mismanagement made by whistle-blower insiders.

The ongoing investigation is being carried out by private contractor TSU International – the investigative arm of international security firm TSU Protective Services. The investigation, which was commissioned by Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau, is expected to conclude at the end of May.

“The rot of mismanagement, nepotism, corporate governance failures and power struggles at the SABS is growing deeper [and is] a situation far worse than just isolated issues,” Democratic Alliance Parliamentary member and Trade, Industry and Competition spokesperson Toby Chance said on April 17.