The fiasco of the SAAQ: return to normal is expected only in July

In some areas, it can still take several weeks, even several months, before getting an appointment with a SAAQ. After several hiccups in the first weeks of launching its new online platform, the state-owned company says things are back to normal.

• Also read: Fake baby car seats: an ‘alarming’ trend

• Also read: A new tax for motorists in the suburbs of Montreal

“Since February 20th, things have leveled off,” says Dave Leclerc, vice president of marketing and road safety strategies. “There are still some small computer system anomalies that need to be corrected, but they are fixed regularly and we provide a lot of customer support.”

Prepare to wait in May

“May is our busiest month,” says Mr. Locklear. “Canceling convertibles, motorcycles and RVs to be done, makes for a very busy week.”

Nearly 260,000 Quebecers have created their SAAQclic account since the site launched, but Mr Leclerc estimates that the number of accounts created will increase with the number of transactions that need to be made during the month.

“There’s a virtual queue this morning, but we’re processing about a hundred clients a minute,” explains Mr Leclerc. “Although queues have been significantly reduced over the past few weeks, online services work well and you can stock up on your vehicles 24/7.”

Deadlines for appointments at the branch

For SAAQ customers who definitely have to go to a branch, things get more difficult.

In some regions, the waiting time for an appointment can be up to two months. However, Mr Leclerc stresses that Crown pumps out appointments every week and encourages users to monitor availability on the site.

“If people find the appointments a little off, I invite people to check the site, sometimes, throughout the week, appointments might be added,” recalls M Leclerc. “However, it depends on the regions. The Montreal area is a very busy area.”

When will there be a real return to normal?

Remember, the SAAQ expected to return to normal in April, but after a few weeks, it’s still pending. Mr Leclerc says the platform is still experiencing technical difficulties, but the teams are working to improve the site’s efficiency.

“A real return to normal, we’re now talking about the beginning of July,” admits Mr. Leclerc. “In general, we have to make sure that we respond to customers quickly, so by early July, we should have resolved all the situations.”