Failed Your MoT - What Next?

Failing an MoT is not unusual, the latest figures from DVA show that in 2017, 34% of cars failed MoT.

What happens if car fails MoT?

Your tester will give you an MoT fail sheet called the VT30 Refusal of MOT Test Certificate. This will show all your vehicle details and the reason(s) why your car failed the test. It’s important to keep hold of this certificate in order to get the car re-tested or in case you want to make an appeal.

You will need to organise to have the failure defects fixed and book your car in for a re-test.

What you do next will depend on the reasons for failure. There are currently 2 levels of failure:

• Dangerous – the car cannot be driven and must be fixed by the test centre before it can be re-tested.
• Major – the car can be driven as long as your current MOT certificate is still valid.

HOW much does it cost to get my MoT retest?

You can save money by getting your MOT re-tested within 10 days:

You will qualify for a FREE PARTIAL RETEST if:

• You leave the vehicle at the test centre for repair and it’s retested within 10 working days.
• You bring your car back to original test centre by the end of the next working day. This only applies if the failure was on certain items (see DVA website for full list of items)

You will qualify for a REDUCED PARTIAL RETEST FEE if you get your car repaired somewhere other than the test centre and return to the original test centre within 10 days. The partial retest fee usually costs 50% of the original test cost.

After 10 days you will be charged the full MOT cost.

Can I drive if my car fails MoT?

Not if the car is deemed to be dangerous by the test centre. In this instance, you will have to get a quote from the garage for the repairs or you could get your car towed to another garage to be fixed. Ask the test centre to fix the issues that caused the failure. If the repairs are made within 10 days, you will only have to have a partial re-test on failure issues listed on the VT30 form.

If your car fails its MoT with a major issue, you can drive but only to get the issues fixed, to get to the re-test AND only if your current MoT certificate is still valid and the car is roadworthy. We would never recommend driving a car that has failed its MoT and you should always check your coverage with your insurance provider.

It’s always a good idea to get your vehicle tested a few weeks before your MoT due date. Get quotes for your MOT at MyCarNeedsA.com

What fails an MoT?

Over a third of fails could have been easily prevented by a few simple checks in advance.

Top reasons for failure 2017:

• Headlights
• Brakes
• Broken reg lights
• Defective sidelights
• Tyre Tread
• Worn Windscreen Wipers
• Faulty Brake Lights
• Coil Springs
• Headlights Not Functioning
• No Windscreen Wash

Appeal failure

If you don’t think your car should have failed its MoT test you can appeal to the DVSA.

Before you make any repairs, it’s advisable to have a detailed discussion about your results with the test centre to make sure there has been no misunderstanding.

Do not make any repairs before making an appeal. You can appeal against the failure within 14 working days of the test by filling in the complaint form and sending it off to the DVSA. You will be contacted within 5 days. If the DVSA think that your car should be rechecked you’ll need to sort out a new date and pay the test fee again. The DVSA will send you an inspection report listing any vehicle defects. If your appeal is successful you will receive a partial refund.