Ecuador and its infinite wisdom. In February, someone wanted to get some pats on the back and declared war on the “tramitadores de matriculas” – people with connections withing the traffic police that do all the nasty bureaucracy for you. You pay a little extra, and get everything delivered to your house without having to go there. Illegal, of course, but very common practice for many private people and second hand car sellers.
But why do it?
Okay, for a second hand car seller with 20+ vehicles it makes sense. But also for private people. The ANT (national traffic agency), including their police, was known for being one of the most corrupt entities within the Ecuadorian government. Which is quite the title. I did the “regular” way two times, not knowing that there was another way to get it done. First, you pay everything, all good. You get an appointment. They make you wait 1h. Then they check your car to see if everything is correct, or so I thought. But they mainly check it to find a flaw that they can then use to tell you that the vehicle won’t pass. You go back to the mechanic, they fix it, back to the revision. Same game. Back at the mechanic, they smile at you: “The car is fine. Ask the guy what he’ll have for lunch, and how much that would cost.”
Guessed it?
It was another 10$, nothing critical, but the whole process was nerve wrecking. Having to deal with greedy people that abuse their power is not one of your favorite uses of time. And if you already have to bribe anyway, why not pay a little more and get it all done for $50, without having to leave the house?
Worked like a charm.
Until it didn’t, February this year. Total crack down. All ANT offices closed, nobody allowed to register cars nor anything, for two months. Then they opened up again, new name on the sub-company that does the revisions. All the tramitadores were out, total victory, everyone is very happy.
Or not?
Nope. Because now everyone who ever did the process the illegal way now can’t get the permit anymore. You see, the tramitadores had their people around the country, not in the same province. Your car could’ve gotten registered in Guayaquil, on the other side of Ecuador. Formerly, no problem. You buy a car there, you drive it home, register in Imbabura, easy peasy. Now? You have to do ALL paperwork always in the county that the permit states.
Have fun driving!
My friend has a lot of cars, he buys them cheap, re-sells. He had to go to Cuenca to get the car re-registered in Imbabura. That’s a 10h drive. Not only that. He had to spend 4 days there, getting it all done, paying hotels and such. And something else:
950$ in bribes.
Wait a minute. Wasn’t corruption out of the picture? Wasn’t there a victory? Nope. It’s even worse now. The power is concentrated on very few people, who can charge exuberant prices for their “work.” There is supposed to be a legal way: Report your matricula lost, then report that you were taken advantage of by an tramitador and file a legal statement, get a certificate that the car is really yours (10$), pay for the duplicate, and so on. But nobody accepts that. They send you on a goose chase until you give up and pay the $500-1000 bribe.
But is that it?
Hopefully. My brothers car, registered on my name, passed quickly. The revision was a lot better organized. I arrived 15min early, no problem, the line was there. Within 1h, the revision was done. No real flaws on the vehicle, some things to keep an eye on, but no attempt to get at my money.
My friend said that with getting the permit here in Imbabura, he won’t have the problem next year. He’ll have to run the cars through personally, but that’s it.
We’ll see…
… with what the never-ending factory of bureaucracy and hence corruption comes up with until then.
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