Concerns raised over procurement for police vehicle repairs
The Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) is struggling to repair its ageing fleet due to delays caused by the procurement process, raising concerns over the efficiency of law enforcement operations in the territory.
During a Standing Finance Committee meeting, Opposition Leader Ronnie Skelton questioned Acting Commissioner of Police Jaqueline Vanterpool about the state of police vehicles, noting that many were outdated and damaged. Skelton said he noticed the age of the police vehicles and that most were over five years old. Twenty of the vehicles are over five years old, and 17 are damaged.
Acting Commissioner Vanterpool confirmed that most of the damaged vehicles were over three years old and cited the procurement process as a major obstacle to timely repairs. Vanterpool explained that the procurement process is making it impossible or difficult to get police vehicles repaired efficiently.
Under current procurement guidelines, the police force must submit three invoices or quotes before proceeding with vehicle repairs. The Opposition Leader questioned whether the force had considered contracting a garage for long-term maintenance instead of handling repairs individually. The Acting Commissioner confirmed that repairs were currently managed individually rather than through an annual maintenance contract.
The Opposition Leader remarked that the existing process needed to be re-evaluated.
Concerns over police vehicle availability have been ongoing. The Acting Commissioner revealed that only one police vehicle is operational on Virgin Gorda, with frequent breakdowns further hampering response times. New vehicles have been ordered for Virgin Gorda, Anegada, Road Town and Jost Van Dyke, but delays in procurement remain an issue.
A separate exchange revealed that the government had budgeted $200,000 to purchase 15 new police vehicles in 2025. However, it remains unclear how quickly these vehicles will be delivered and whether the procurement process will further delay their acquisition.
The issue comes as the RVIPF grapples with other logistical and operational challenges, including staffing shortages and resource constraints. Calls for a more streamlined procurement system have been made in an effort to ensure that officers have the necessary tools to carry out their duties effectively.
Copyright 2025 BVI News, Media Expressions Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
$200,000 for 15 police vehicles! I gotta see that one happpening you cant get 15 regular vehicles for dat price
Instead they choose a name and model and stick to that and order spare parts and if one is damaged beyond repair they could use the parts from it, they buying from any and everyone!
Anytime is Changan or haval Ayo gone buy it going be a problem.
Stick to the Toyota brand!
Why government workers have Lexus, Land Rovers and other luxury brands which driving all hours of the night?
Them have Nissan, Ford, Toyota and if one broke down, the parts can’t fix another. Stick to one good manufacturer. By doing so you will pay less for a vehicle from the manufacturer and also if one vehicle is to be terminated because it’s outdated, you can then use the parts on another on the fleet.
Why is anyone surprised by this? You sat back and let people come from the UK to tell you nonsense about your systems and now look? We are really stupid people around here. The systems needed tightening yes, but not the over the top as was done with the COI recommendations. I would like anyone to name me ONE SINGLE COI RECOMMENDATION that made life better in the BVI, name just ONE!
The COI recommendations/reforms have taken the BVI back 20 years and that is a fact. We have wasted 2 years focused on nonsense instead of building the Territory and assisting the people in need. The new rules have made things 10 times harder for government to get anything done so what was really the purpose? Putting things on paper and increasing rules/procedures does not equate to good governance, it equates to idiocy!