What To Do If Your Car Fails Its MOT

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An MOT test is legally required once a year on vehicles over three years old to ensure that it meets the minimum acceptable road safety and environmental standards, with lots of checks carried out on the vehicle to ensure it’s still roadworthy and doesn’t pose a risk to you or other drivers.

The braking system will be checked out, as well the fuel system, lights, mirrors, wipers, the exhaust, seatbelts… and lots more! There are many reasons why your car may fail its MOT and many of these are preventable, so regular maintenance of your vehicle can improve its chances of passing with no trouble whatsoever.

If it does fail for whatever reason, however, you can leave it at the test centre for the necessary repairs to be carried out. If you want to have your car partially retested for free, make sure the repair work is carried out within ten working days of the initial test failure.

There are different defect categories to be aware of: dangerous, major and minor. If your car has a dangerous or major defect, it will fail the test. Dangerous defects mean the car is unroadworthy and these issues will need to be fixed before you can drive the car.

If you have major defects, you will need to have these repaired immediately but you will be able to drive the vehicle elsewhere to have the repairs completed. Minor defects, meanwhile, won’t see the car fail but you will need to have the repairs carried out as soon as possible.

You can help prepare your car for its MOT by giving it a good clean and fixing any small issues you find, such as faulty light bulbs. Checking the tyre tread depth can also be useful, as can checking the windscreen for chips or cracks and checking the fuel and engine oil levels.

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