MOT trap for the unwary.

[grober]

DETAILS BELOW.
MoT loophole could see drivers handed £2,500 fine and penalty points | Auto Express

 

[MarkACLS]

DETAILS BELOW.
MoT loophole could see drivers handed £2,500 fine and penalty points | Auto Express

Thanks for sharing. I didn't know that!


Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[whitenemesis]

So many people have argued that the old cert was still valid, pleased to see it clarified, a fail is an instant fail and invalidation of the old cert.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

I asked this question a few weeks ago because I thought that if a car fails then it's simply unroadworthy and it's been documented.

One of our members rather tartly 'put me back in my box', turns out that I was right to question it after all.

 

[GeeJayW]

The MoT is simply a compulsory, but basic roadworthy test. Who in their right mind drives around in a vehicle that has failed? Just plain daft.

 

[markjay]

So it seems that same rule applies regardless of whether the MOT expired or not - if the car fails, you are allowed to drive to a garage for the car to be repaired and to an MOT testing station to be retested. All need to be pre-booked I'm told...

 

[Benzmanc]

So it seems that same rule applies regardless of whether the MOT expired or not - if the car fails, you are allowed to drive to a garage for the car to be repaired and to an MOT testing station to be retested. All need to be pre-booked I'm told...

Do you need to pre-book if you're taking it home to repair yourself??

 

[MarkACLS]

I was actually toying with getting an early MOT done on my Defender, which is due in July. Whilst I think it would pass, there is a build up of corrosion on the front bulkhead and braking system. I have a new galvanised chassis and galvanised front bulkhead on back order from Marsland to be fitted (8 weeks delivery time) and when it arrives a four week rebuild to replace with new all doors, bulkhead, rechassis, brakes (calipers, disks, pads, lines, boosters etc), clutch, exhaust, bushings, springs, dampers, cross members and turrets.

This work brings it uncomfortably close to my MOT date, where of course it will more easily pass, but I'll have difficulty getting it to a station with no MOT - if it lapses. What to do...

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[st13phil]

I asked this question a few weeks ago because I thought that if a car fails then it's simply unroadworthy and it's been documented.

(My bold) And that's the critical factor: an MOT fail means that at the time the vehicle was inspected, it was deemed to be not roadworthy. To drive an unroadworthy vehicle on the public highway is a separate (and potentially much more serious) offence than simply not having a valid MOT Test Certificate. You don't collect a £2.5k fine or a driving ban for simply not having a valid MOT Cert: that is normally disposed of by way of a non-endorseable fixed penalty of £100.

 

[markjay]

Do you need to pre-book if you're taking it home to repair yourself??

No idea... to compound matters further, my local MOT testing station does not take bookings - its first-come-first-served only.

 

[Cymruambyth]

I`ve done this since I started driving. Always took a week or 2 early and if there are any issues I have time to get rectified.

 

[flowrider]

If your car fails its MOT can you be stopped and fined driving the car home?

 

[GeeJayW]

If your car fails its MOT can you be stopped and fined driving the car home?

As far as I know, not if you're driving directly home. If you chose to take a significant diversion on the way home, then that may well be different.

 

[Hawkwind]

Am MOT certificate just means the car is roadworthy at the time of testing

It does not mean the car is safe to drive for the next 12 months. How can anyone know that?

 

[MisterMicawber]

A reader's comment after the article says:
"According to the government's own website for "Driving a vehicle that’s failed":
You can take your vehicle away if your MOT certificate is still valid.
If your MOT has run out you can take your vehicle to:
* have the failed defects fixed
* a pre-arranged MOT test appointment
In both cases, your vehicle still needs to meet the minimum standards of roadworthiness at all times or you can be fined.

So you can still drive after an early fail if safe to do so"

If the car failed because the windscreen wipers weren't working correctly I doubt that the car would be considered unsafe, unless it was raining hard.

The government website doesn't say you can only take your car home. But it does say that the car should be roadworthy, which is always the case, not just after an MOT.

 

[clk320x]

This is a bit annoying,but I guess if it's dangerous it's dangerous

 

[markjay]

I thought that by definition a car that does not meet the MOT requirements in full is not roadworthy?

How can drivers know if their failed cars are 'roadworthy' or not, anyway?

The MOT tester is not likely to sign a form that says that the failed car is 'safe to drive'.

A bit of a grey area I think.

 

[PobodY]

Easy. - The tester says to you, "it's not safe to drive this car, I can't let you take it unless it's on a flatbed."... or "you can fix that yourself, shall I schedule the retest for 10 days time?".

 

[geraldrobins]

I thought that by definition a car that does not meet the MOT requirements in full is not roadworthy?

How can drivers know if their failed cars are 'roadworthy' or not, anyway?

The MOT tester is not likely to sign a form that says that the failed car is 'safe to drive'.

A bit of a grey area I think.

I suppose its also a question of the magnitude of the failure. A broken indicator glass or worn wiper blade is not like having brakes that only work on 3 wheels. I cant see the police doing you for the former.

 

[whitenemesis]

I suppose its also a question of the magnitude of the failure. A broken indicator glass or worn wiper blade is not like having brakes that only work on 3 wheels. I cant see the police doing you for the former.

True to a point, the Ol' Bill could issue a FPN for the broken lens though..