Guyana goes on car-buying frenzy

Dec 31, 2011 News

-almost 700 ‘PP’ series vehicles registered in December

By Leonard Gildarie

Since the ‘PP’ series was introduced just a month ago, almost 700 cars have been registered, the Guyana

GRA’s Khurshid Sattaur

Revenue Authority (GRA) has disclosed.
According to Commissioner-General Khurshid Sattaur, at the close of business on Thursday, 678 cars in the series were registered, signalling that there was a frenzy in the number of cars being purchased.
While the total number of vehicles registered this year was not immediately available, it is set to break last year’s record where over 13,000 cars were registered, inclusive of hire cars and taxis.
Figures for the number of trucks, pickups, vans and motorcycles were also not immediately available.
According to GRA figures, the PEE series was introduced in June 1993 and lasted a year before the ‘FF’ came into being.
The ‘JJ’ series struggled somewhat between 2003-2006 before car sales picked up that year with over 10,000 sedans and vans registered.
Since then, every year, GRA has been introducing a new series.
With the local banks opening up more credit lines to reduce liquidity, Guyanese has been cashing in, with the number of persons owning vehicles increasing in leaps and bounds.
At least 10,000 vehicles are being added to the system every year, proving a major headache for the transportation sector.
With long traffic lines the norm at peak time, the situation has worsened for this Christmas season.
A perusal of the figures revealed that between 2004-2007, some 10,000 motor-cycles have been registered. The best years for the motor-cycle dealers were between August 2004 and October 2007 ) two years, two months) when 10,000 of these were sold.
The registration of hire cars and taxis are also being registered at a frenetic pace. While the ‘HA’ series lasted 15 years between 1986 and 2002, the ‘HB’ took nine years to sell out ending in September.

700 private cars and vans have been registered for December month, GRA has announced.

The GRA boss yesterday disclosed that the agency is continuously upgrading the current system at the Licence Revenue Office to speed up processing time and increase security.
Recently, the GRA announced that it has put in place new measures to reduce the heavy crowds that would converge on the Smyth Street office for the Motor Vehicle Licences.
In the new year, owners will have to renew the licences on the original date of registration.
Sattaur insisted yesterday that the system will ease the situation around the licence office tremendously.

8 thoughts on “Guyana goes on car-buying frenzy”

Fabian Bowen December 31, 2011 at 9:42 am

Nice to see alot of guyanese people having a chance to own a vehicle now.
RaAmen December 31, 2011 at 10:45 am

Have a license division in each region sattaur, guyanese going to drive out of guyana wid all them cars. Lol.
1. Overseasboys January 1, 2012 at 2:41 am
  
  Post Office.
ugroup December 31, 2011 at 11:42 am

I guess you will have to build more roads and parking
Quibian December 31, 2011 at 1:40 pm

hehehe! and some anti-govts here say guyan is a poor and downtrodden country! since when a poor and downtrodden country’s people can afford to buy cars? has there ever been a time when guyanese seen more prosperity before?
1. Overseasboys January 1, 2012 at 2:41 am
  
  Bank loan brother, wait for the re-possession, just wait.
Jason Dick-Grant January 1, 2012 at 1:10 am

We should ask ourselves our people are able to finance buying a car when being pay meager salaries and moreso for those not wroking Quibian. There is more than meets the eye before you jump to conclusion.
Overseasboys January 1, 2012 at 2:39 am

People buying cars indeed. Why don’t you do a report on why he is so hard on private people bring in in there own cars etc.
Why when a use car cost US$1200.00 in Japan, you have to pay over US$6000.00 in duty in Guyana? You call this practice fair? The Japanese people did all the hard work with the vehicle and Guyana, a backward system is slowing down progress of ordinary people. This system needs fixing and fairness.