Experts: Central online vehicle registration would save 300 million euros a year

A centralized, nationwide online service for vehicle registration would save around 300 million euros a year in administrative costs. This is predicted by the city councils of Leipzig and Dresden, the Saxon Association of Towns and Municipalities and digital politician Markus Reichel (CDU) in a joint concept for the centralization of digital vehicle registration. “The centralization of vehicle registration based on i-Kfz is technically possible, economically viable, and politically feasible,” the concept states. The initiative is supported by former Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière.

To date, online registration in Germany has been organized on a decentralized basis: Over 400 districts and independent cities are responsible, although the rules for registration are the same nationwide. Not all districts and cities offer an online service yet. According to the iKfz dashboard of the Federal Ministry of Transport, 378 registration offices currently offer online registration, while 33 do not. According to the dashboard, the proportion of digital registration processes is just around eight percent.

Federal Motor Transport Authority should become responsible

The initiative from Saxony is now calling for the task to be centralized at federal level: “With the new bundling of competencies in a digital ministry at federal level, the prerequisite has now been created to coordinate better solutions for a digital Germany and to boldly tackle the reorganization of tasks between the federal, state and local governments,” said Reichel, a member of the Bundestag, at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday.

Specifically, the initiative proposes that the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) should handle all standard processes such as new registrations, changes of owner and deregistration with a central specialist software and a nationwide online portal. The local motor vehicle authorities should remain active in an “advisory capacity”, particularly in special cases. The initiative's goal is for 80 percent of processes to be handled digitally by 2030.

The centralization of the online service alone would noticeably reduce the workload of the 411 motor vehicle offices, the initiative claims. With the increase in online processing, the number of jobs required would then fall “with far greater potential for relief”. The employees of the vehicle registration offices could “in the vast majority of cases” remain employed locally in other areas of administration, as the local authorities' need for skilled workers is high.

Billions in savings possible overall

Nationwide, the initiative estimates that local authority personnel costs would fall by 250 to 300 million euros and IT costs by 20 to 40 million euros. The estimated conversion costs of 500 to 800 million euros due to centralization could be amortized within two to three years.

However, the initiative believes that vehicle registration is just one of numerous administrative services that could be centralized. It sees further potential in areas such as housing benefit, parental allowance, driving licenses and registration. The Saxon digitalization experts estimate that full implementation of the so-called “Dresden demands” for centralization of suitable services at federal or state level could save at least 10 billion euros per year.

(cwo)