Kelera Ditaiki 
Rental vehicle operators in the West say some businesses have been left waiting for years to get permits to legally operate their vehicles.
They say this is affecting businesses that have already invested heavily in vehicles and are paying the required fees.
Fiji Rental Association Secretary Ashwant Kumar says some operators have invested up to 150,000 dollars in new vehicles but are unable to use them for rental operations.
“And until now, they haven’t got the permit. So it is one of the major issues which is being faced in the West. So if any business has spent so much money on the vehicles- 100,000, 150,000 on one vehicle- they can’t keep the vehicle anywhere. Now they are giving the vehicle to rent privately. Now they are being booked by the EPA for running a private rental. So here, what I’d like to say is it is not the operators’ fault.”
He says the situation has forced some operators to look at other ways of using the vehicles.
Land Transport Authority official Vani says new rental applications are currently on hold while the authority carries out an audit of existing rental operators.
Vani says the authority will provide an update once the audit is completed.
No timeframe has been given for when new rental applications will reopen.
