The Local Police of Arrecife has reported a vehicle mechanics workshop in Arrecife, after agents assigned to the Documentoscopy Unit (UDOC) carried out an inspection of it last May, suspecting that it could be carrying out the activity clandestinely.
This fact, according to what the City Council has now reported, was confirmed by the agents, verifying that the person in charge of the activity lacked the corresponding administrative authorizations, locating inside three vehicles that were being repaired, as well as more than a dozen vehicle engines, a large number of spare parts and tools typical of this type of activity.
The police also determined that the workshop was not registered in the Waste Production and Management Registry either, being able to verify that "the person in charge was using the different bathroom drains to dispose of waste generated by the activity", which implies "a serious environmental risk".
Economic losses to the sector and risks to road safety
"Illegal workshops are a problem that continues throughout 2019 and that from 2012 to 2018 have meant economic losses to the sector of 3,500 million euros, according to figures provided by the Spanish Confederation of Automotive Repair and Related (CETRAA)", highlights the City Council, which points out that this association also indicates that "the worrying thing is that the activity of the workshop has fallen by an average of 20% and has forced many facilities to close, given that illegal ones do not pay taxes or social security contributions for their workers, nor do they apply indirect taxes, in the Canary Islands the IGIC and therefore, they do not enter it into the public coffers".
In addition, it points out that "clandestine activity also causes a risk to road safety due to the dubious quality of the repairs and the materials and spare parts used, without giving any guarantee of repair to the consumer either".
Finally, the City Council indicates that, "like the workshop reported on this occasion, this type of illegal establishment usually lacks any industrial safety measures against fire as well as civil liability insurance, so in the event of any damage to the vehicle, the consumer will not be able to claim any type of compensation either".
