MOT Question

uksoldierboy · 7 Sep 2013 at 21:24

Hi all,

The Mrs MOT is up this month, on the 21st, but i just wanted to get some clarification on when we need to get it done by.

Is it before the 21st, or is it monthly based? as in before in end of September?

I've told her that it's before 21st as that what i've always assumed, but tbh i'm not sure myself.

Thanks.

BigglesPiP · 7 Sep 2013 at 21:30

Get it done any time between now and the 21st, the new one will start from the 21st.[1]

bledd · 7 Sep 2013 at 21:50

Yup, if it expires on the 21st September, then the earliest you can have it done and to keep it valid until 21st September2014 is 30 ddays before that date.

So any time between 21st Aug and the expiry. I like to book it in on the first day possible. Just in case work is required on it.

Check your last mot certificate, it will say the earliest date on that .

MOOGLEYS · 7 Sep 2013 at 23:21

Just remember if you do MOT it early and it fails although in theory your old cert is still valid you will be driving a vehicle that is known to be in a not roadworthy condition which is an offence under the highway code. In the event of a crash it could also invalidate your insurance.

[TW]Fox · 8 Sep 2013 at 06:40

Is that straight out of the Ladybird book of law?

bledd · 8 Sep 2013 at 08:19

MOOGLEYS said:
Just remember if you do MOT it early and it fails although in theory your old cert is still valid you will be driving a vehicle that is known to be in a not roadworthy condition which is an offence under the highway code. In the event of a crash it could also invalidate your insurance.

No.

If it's deemed dangerously unsafe to drive, then they won't let you drive out. (would you want to)

Rybo89 · 8 Sep 2013 at 08:25

MOOGLEYS said:
Just remember if you do MOT it early and it fails although in theory your old cert is still valid you will be driving a vehicle that is known to be in a not roadworthy condition which is an offence under the highway code. In the event of a crash it could also invalidate your insurance.

Where you got this from? Surely you have just made this up?

Not true at all.

MOOGLEYS · 8 Sep 2013 at 08:52

http://www.confused.com/news-views/blogs/can-you-drive-your-car-if-it-has-failed-mot

http://www.drivingtestsuccess.com/news/mot-and-the-law/

It was on TV if you MOT your car early and it fails any part of the test you are issued a VT30. Which is under the new system recorded with VOSA. Continuing to drive means you are driving a known defective vehicle which is an offence. As your old certificate is still valid you can drive away from the test centre but as you also have a VT30 you should only be driving to get repairs or back to the test centre for a re test.

Your insurance states that your car should be of roadworthy condition with a valid MOT. Although you have a valid MOT a VT30 being issued means you did not meet the requirements for the MOT test which was done after the current MOT.

My explanation is more than likely rubbish.

This is from the VOSA site regarding the issue of a VT30 note the last bit.

Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate
Form VT30 – Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate. A red form with minor details of your car, the name of tester and address of test station. This form lists the items your car failed to pass.

A Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate means one or more items have failed to meet the minimum legal requirements for a pass. The item(s) will be listed on the form. If you intend to use your car on the roads, the item(s) will need to be replaced/repaired urgently. It may be possible to arrange replacement/repair of failed item(s) at the test station premises, to enable your car to achieve an MOT test pass Certificate before you drive the car away.

However, if you intend to drive your car away from the test station with a Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate, there are some stipulations. It is illegal to drive a car of MOT-testable age that does not have a current MOT test certificate on public roads, with the exception of driving it away to a place of repair, which may include your home residence. From there you may be permitted to drive to a pre-booked place of repair, and to a pre-booked MOT test station.

It is not illegal to sell a car with a Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate, however, a buyer may be breaking the law by driving it away, unless the stipulations above are satisfied. Even then it is not guaranteed that you will not be prosecuted for driving an unroadworthy car, and your insurance may be invalidated.

Rybo89 · 8 Sep 2013 at 09:32

Not clicked the links but the quoted text is the norm and always has been.

Your car is valid till the expiry on the current MOT paper work, regardless if it has failed an MOT before expiry. Unless, it has been deemed too dangerous for the roads.

I think there is a few MOT testers on here, hopefully one see's this and clears it up.

johnny6 · 8 Sep 2013 at 11:30

However, if you intend to drive your car away from the test station with a Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate, there are some stipulations. It is illegal to drive a car of MOT-testable age that does not have a current MOT test certificate on public roads, with the exception of driving it away to a place of repair, which may include your home residence. From there you may be permitted to drive to a pre-booked place of repair, and to a pre-booked MOT test station.

I would read that as:

If your vehicle failed an mot today and does not have a previous mot which still has time left on it. You can't drive it other than to a place of repair.

However

If your vehicle failed an mot today and does have a previous mot which still has time left on it. You can pretty much drive it where you want.

johnny6 · 8 Sep 2013 at 11:41

bledd. said:
No.

If it's deemed dangerously unsafe to drive, then they won't let you drive out. (would you want to)

I'm pretty sure this isn't true either but I could be wrong.

The mot centres job is to complete the test and record the vehicles condition at the point of said test. What you as the driver decide to do with that information is up to you. I can't see how the mot centre would be liable for the driver ignoring a seriously failed mot and driving off.

Also if mot centres started refusing to release vehicles because of safety issues what's to stop them charging 500 quid for a replacement bulb.

miniyazz · 8 Sep 2013 at 11:55

johnny6 said:
However, if you intend to drive your car away from the test station with a Refusal of an MOT Test Certificate, there are some stipulations. It is illegal to drive a car of MOT-testable age that does not have a current MOT test certificate on public roads, with the exception of driving it away to a place of repair, which may include your home residence. From there you may be permitted to drive to a pre-booked place of repair, and to a pre-booked MOT test station.

I would read that as:

If your vehicle failed an mot today and does not have a previous mot which still has time left on it. You can't drive it other than to a place of repair.

However

If your vehicle failed an mot today and does have a previous mot which still has time left on it. You can pretty much drive it where you want.

Nope, your current MOT (which is essentially a certificate of fitness) becomes invalid after a year or after having a further test saying it's not fit to drive.

As for garages holding cars, I expect if they have serious concerns they can contact the DVLA/police even if not empowered to hold cars.

MOOGLEYS · 8 Sep 2013 at 12:19

Your current certificate does not become invalid if you have the test early and fail. The failure will be recorded and a VT30 issued for the vehicle.

The MOT test is a safety test and all parts must be met for a certificate to be issued. Having a VT30 raised on a vehicle is evidence that it has not met the requirements for an MOT test and can be deemed unsafe.

Remember your MOT certificate is only showing at the time of testing it was deemed to be safe. If you have a VT30 issued at a later date which is recorded by VOSA and continue to drive you could be stopped and prosecuted for driving a known unsafe vehicle and the VT30 would be evidence to support this. The Highway Code states that a vehicle must be off roadworthy condition having a VT30 issued against a vehicle contradicts this.

It was on TV not long after the MOT was computerised. As they said a lot of people have fallen fowl of this as before you could just produce your existing certificate and no one was the wiser. Now it is recorded with VOSA on a database which is updated at the time of testing.

johnny6 · 8 Sep 2013 at 12:20

miniyazz said:
Nope, your current MOT (which is essentially a certificate of fitness) becomes invalid after a year or after having a further test saying it's not fit to drive.

As for garages holding cars, I expect if they have serious concerns they can contact the DVLA/police even if not empowered to hold cars.

IF that was the case how does the VOSA refusal of an mot certificate link make any sense

Read it again. VOSA state if you have been refused an mot certificate. It is illegal to drive the vehicle away unless you have a valid mot certificate. If as you claim your current mot becomes invalid at the point of which your vehicle fails an mot test, there is no way you can have a valid mot certificate to drive the vehicle away.

If that was the case the VOSA link would just say if you have been refused an mot certificate you can not drive the vehicle end of. They wouldn't bother with the rest of the paragraph.

MOOGLEYS · 8 Sep 2013 at 12:25

Even then it is not guaranteed that you will not be prosecuted for driving an unroadworthy car, and your insurance may be invalidated.

This should be a separate paragraph copy and paste on ipad is not easy.

Remember having a valid MOT certificate does not mean a car is roadworthy 11 months after it was completed. It is the drivers responsibility to make sure the vehicle remains roadworthy. Having the test done early and failing to fix any issues before driving is the driver failing to meet these requirements and hence possibly being done for driving an unroadworthy vehicle. The VT30 could be used as evidence to support this.

Lopéz · 8 Sep 2013 at 13:48

bledd. said:
No.

If it's deemed dangerously unsafe to drive, then they won't let you drive out. (would you want to)

That isn't true either.

miniyazz · 8 Sep 2013 at 17:24

johnny6 said:
IF that was the case how does the VOSA refusal of an mot certificate link make any sense

Read it again. VOSA state if you have been refused an mot certificate. It is illegal to drive the vehicle away unless you have a valid mot certificate. If as you claim your current mot becomes invalid at the point of which your vehicle fails an mot test, there is no way you can have a valid mot certificate to drive the vehicle away.

If that was the case the VOSA link would just say if you have been refused an mot certificate you can not drive the vehicle end of. They wouldn't bother with the rest of the paragraph.

It doesn't actually talk specifically about driving it away with a previous valid certificate, it just talks about the legalities of driving the car without an MOT - i.e. that you can do so but only to a garage/place of repair/home. To me it implies that all cars will be in this category once the VT30 is issued.

bledd · 8 Sep 2013 at 17:27

johnny6 said:
I'm pretty sure this isn't true either but I could be wrong.

The mot centres job is to complete the test and record the vehicles condition at the point of said test. What you as the driver decide to do with that information is up to you. I can't see how the mot centre would be liable for the driver ignoring a seriously failed mot and driving off.

Also if mot centres started refusing to release vehicles because of safety issues what's to stop them charging 500 quid for a replacement bulb.

Thought I'd read it somewhere, eg if you had a horribly bald tyre, full of broken screws