MOT checklist: everything you need to know

The MOT trial tin marque galore car owners nervous. A nonaccomplishment could outgo hundreds of pounds successful repair bills, or, successful immoderate cases, instrumentality your pridefulness and joyousness disconnected the roadworthy for good.

But there's nary request to accent astir it; erstwhile you're acquainted with however vehicles are tested, it's casual to archer if your car's apt to walk oregon neglect earlier you caput to the trial centre, and get immoderate imaginable faults rectified. 

What is an MOT? | How overmuch does it cost? | How tin I cheque if my car is MOT'd? | How bash I cheque my MOT history? | Is my car exempt from MOT? | MOT checklist | Most communal reasons for MOT failure

What is an MOT?

The MOT is your car’s yearly roadworthiness introspection and is carried retired successful accordance with the latest regulations issued by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). 

All vehicles much than 3 years aged indispensable person a valid MOT earlier being driven connected nationalist roads, and you tin beryllium fined up to £1000 for driving a conveyance aft its certificate has expired. Insurance companies are besides wrong their rights to invalidate a harm assertion if the policyholder cannot nutrient impervious of their vehicle’s roadworthiness. 

To pass, a conveyance indispensable conform to a strict acceptable of information and emissions criteria, with precise requirements varying according to its size, property and class. If immoderate faults are identified arsenic unsafe oregon illegal, the conveyance volition automatically fail, but little important shortcomings - specified arsenic a astir worn-out tyre oregon rusty exhaust - volition beryllium listed arsenic an ‘advisory’ and volition apt request to beryllium rectified earlier the adjacent test. 

Drivers tin sojourn immoderate 1 of astir 20,000 licenced MOT stations successful Britain, with the mean trial lasting astir 45 minutes.

When bash I request to get an MOT? 

Your car volition beryllium legally required to person its archetypal MOT by the 3rd day of its archetypal registration, and each twelvemonth aft that, if it's implicit 3 years old. 

An MOT volition past for 1 twelvemonth and you tin spot the day it runs retired connected your MOT walk certificate. 

There are proposals by the authorities to propulsion the archetypal MOT to 4 years aft a model's archetypal registration, amid the increasing popularity of hybrid and electrical vehicles and the instauration of caller conveyance technology. The proposals besides see extending the time betwixt a car's MOT to 2 years, alternatively than annually, fixed improvements to car information and physique quality. 

The authorities says, if some moves are made, it will prevention motorists astir £100 cardinal per year successful MOT fees - but nary last determination has been made arsenic of February 2023.

How overmuch does it cost? 

As of 2010, the maximum interest a store tin complaint for an MOT trial is £54.85 for cars and airy vans. This terms covers each aspects of the process including admin charges, worldly costs and labour. 

If a conveyance fails its test, it tin stay astatine the store for repair and beryllium submitted for a escaped partial re-test wrong 10 working days. When this clip has elapsed, however, it volition request to acquisition the full trial again wherever it is taken. If an proprietor chooses to repair the conveyance themselves oregon instrumentality it to a antithetic garage, it tin beryllium re-tested wrong the 10-day play for fractional the archetypal cost. 

Drivers should enactment that a re-test discount is lone applicable once. If your conveyance fails twice, you person to wage the afloat outgo of the adjacent MOT test. 

How tin I cheque if my car is MOT'd?

Most garages volition connection to nonstop you a escaped reminder substance successful the run-up to your scheduled MOT date, but moving a vehicle’s numberplate done https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history volition archer you erstwhile its existent certificate expires. 

How to cheque your MOT past online

The gov.uk MOT checker tin besides beryllium utilized to reappraisal erstwhile MOT tests, with broad accusation disposable connected past advisories and failures. This is utile if you request to punctual yourself of what needs fixing earlier heading to the garage, oregon if you’re deciding whether oregon not to bargain a second-hand car. 

Particular attraction should beryllium paid to the past of non-consumable parts similar the suspension mounts, chassis and little assemblage arsenic nonaccomplishment successful these areas volition beryllium costly to repair, and apt fatal for older cars. It’s worthy remembering that items specified arsenic tyres, shot joints, headlights and brake pads deterioration retired anyway, and should beryllium replaced arsenic recommended. 

Is my car exempt from MOT?

Cars little than 3 years aged bash not request to beryllium enactment done an MOT test, arsenic it’s assumed their information volition not dangerously deteriorate portion they’re inactive ‘new’. Any areas of interest volition apt beryllium pointed retired to an proprietor and repaired during a dealership check-up oregon work anyway. 

Similarly, vehicles manufactured implicit 40 years agone are classed arsenic ‘historic’ and are not officially required to beryllium tested, but tin inactive beryllium deemed unsafe by the constabulary and taken disconnected the road. 

To assertion historical exemption, a conveyance indispensable beryllium mostly successful archetypal condition, with nary important modifications made to the bodywork, suspension oregon powertrain. Many classical car owners take to person their car tested anyway, conscionable for bid of mind, which is mostly accepted to beryllium the champion people of action. 

MOT Checklist

Number plate

Often overlooked, your car’s fig sheet is 1 of the easiest things you tin cheque to debar a nonaccomplishment oregon advisory. To pass, it indispensable beryllium the close colour (usually black/yellow astatine the rear, black/white astatine the front), beryllium afloat legible (no important cracks, scrapes oregon fading) and show the close registration format for your car’s year. 

The DVSA besides advises that the characters connected your fig sheet indispensable beryllium successful the close font, and that the sheet itself indispensable beryllium sized appropriately. 

Lights and indicators

Every trial volition see a trial of your car’s headlights, which should beryllium aimed properly, power correctly betwixt dipped and afloat beam and person clear, unmarked lenses. 

The indicators volition besides beryllium tested astatine this stage, with a nonaccomplishment issued for immoderate non-flashing bulbs. The fig sheet light, reversing lights and immoderate fog lamps volition besides beryllium checked. 

Brake lights

Any conveyance with improperly functioning brake lights is dangerous, truthful they should illuminate intelligibly erstwhile unit is applied to the brake pedal during the test. 

The ‘presence, operation, condition’ regularisation comes into play here, arsenic well; if your car has a centrally mounted 3rd brake airy (which it doesn’t legally need), it has to work. The basal regularisation is: if it’s there, it needs to function. 

Tyres

Tyre tread extent is integral to a vehicle’s safety, and tin beryllium 1 of the astir costly failures to fix. It doesn’t instrumentality overmuch to cheque beforehand, though - the minimum mean tread extent allowed connected UK roads is 1.6mm - oregon astir the aforesaid arsenic the borderline of a 20p coin - truthful if you’ve got 1 successful your pocket, tally it down each groove and you’ll spot however overmuch life’s near successful your rubber. 

While you’re there, cheque the sidewalls for bulges and cracks, arsenic these are not lone MOT failures, but highly unsafe astatine immoderate speed. 

Windscreen wipers

Your beforehand wipers should beryllium successful bully moving order, and beryllium susceptible of efficaciously clearing ungraded from the windscreen. This means the blades themselves indispensable not person immoderate tears oregon cracks that permission smears crossed the solid successful rainy conditions.

Rear wipers aren’t tested, but if your car has 1 and it isn’t working, it’s champion to get it fixed successful immoderate case, for bid of mind. 

Screen wash

Windscreen washer jets indispensable beryllium angled and pressured correctly. It mightiness astonishment you to cognize that adjacent showing up with an bare surface lavation vessel tin effect successful a fail, truthful raid your store shelves for a vessel of screenwash! 

Seats and seatbelts

Seatbelts prevention lives, which is wherefore they’re thoroughly checked during an MOT test. The belts themselves indispensable widen and retract arsenic intended, beryllium successful bully usable information (ie not astir to rip) and clip securely into the fastener. 

An older car mightiness neglect its trial if the seatbelt anchorage points (usually the apical and bottommost of the B-pillar) are excessively damaged oregon corroded, arsenic this importantly reduces the device’s quality to support the occupant successful spot during an impact. 

Fuel and motor oil

It mightiness look obvious, but it’s a bully thought to marque definite your car has capable substance for the MOT trial to beryllium carried out. The tester volition tally the car for a fewer minutes during the emissions test, and volition apt determination it astir the store for antithetic parts of the process. 

The aforesaid goes for oil; cheque your car’s dipstick earlier heading to the store to marque definite the engine’s not successful immoderate information of moving dry. An MOT tester is wrong their rights to garbage to trial immoderate car with debased fluids. 

What are the astir communal reasons for MOT failure?

It mightiness astonishment you to larn that the astir communal crushed for MOT nonaccomplishment is besides 1 of the cheapest faults to rectify. Official information from the DVSA shows that astir 19% of vehicles neglect for a lighting issue, which tin usually beryllium attributed to thing much than a blown bulb. Best signifier is to cheque that the indicators, headlights, brake lights and reverse lights each relation correctly earlier the MOT test.

Suspension faults are the 2nd astir common, but tin beryllium overmuch much costly to fix. Testers won’t similar leaky daze absorbers, cracked springs oregon corroded mounting points, truthful get underneath with a torch and look for immoderate signs of imminent failure. Also, support an receptor retired implicit potholes and speedbumps, arsenic worn bushings and escaped apical mounts volition marque a large knocking noise. 

Brakes and tyres are different country wherever your car tin fto you down, but luckily it should beryllium rather evident if you’ve got a occupation here. Running a 20p coin astir the tyres volition springiness an thought of their beingness expectancy, and checking the interior and outer sidewalls volition uncover immoderate unsafe bulges oregon cracks. You tin usually archer the information of your brakes by their show and immoderate dependable they make, but it doesn’t instrumentality excessively agelong to region the instrumentality for a adjacent inspection of the discs, drums, pads oregon shoes. 

Finally, making definite you tin spot portion driving is an implicit must. Get escaped of thing that could obstruct your presumption of the roadworthy up – telephone holders, aerial fresheners, sat navs and stickers – and guarantee determination are nary chips oregon cracks successful the windscreen itself.