Delivery problems
The police have to be creative with their fleet now that replacing and/or repairing the cars is proving more difficult than expected. Supply problems, which are currently affecting many sectors, are the cause.
Private car buyers are confronted with long delivery times for new cars and parts for repair sometimes take a long time to arrive. The police cannot escape similar problems, it is reported The Telegraph. Replacing written-off cars or repairing cars that have to continue for a while is made more difficult by delivery problems. On AutoWeek let the national police know: “It is not only about the delivery of the vehicles themselves, but also parts that sometimes become defective. And police-specific parts, such as communication equipment,” explains a spokesperson.
The most commonly used police car is the Mercedes-Benz B-class, but difficulties appear to arise in particular with the Audi’s A6 Avant, which the police use for rapid interventions. According to the spokesperson, they often already have high mileages and are therefore due for replacement, but this is delayed. “Replacement is ready at the dealer, but we are still waiting for the conversion for the police. For this, a wiring harness is used for all police equipment that is being installed, which has been delayed. We hope to be able to put the new cars into service in the coming months .”
Although the police The Telegraph said that the situation is ‘very undesirable’, the spokesperson explains AutoWeek that can be worked around. “Despite these delivery problems: the police have enough vehicles. It sometimes requires a little more creativity, but police officers are facing hotter fires. For example, cars now make a little more kilometers than under normal circumstances, we keep extra stocks ourselves and we pick parts of broken cars.”
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl