Getting an MOT
1. The MOT test
The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) and Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) have merged to form the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).
You must keep any vehicles driven on the road in a roadworthy condition. The MOT test checks that your vehicle meets road safety and environmental standards.
It isn’t the same as having your vehicle serviced and doesn’t check its general mechanical condition.
The leaflets ‘Your car and the MOT’ and ‘Your motorbike and the MOT’ include a list of the parts of your vehicle that will be tested.
When to test
You must get an MOT test every year once your vehicle is 3 years old (or 1 year old in some cases - check the MOT fees table to see when).
You can then renew your MOT up to a month before it expires. The earliest date you can get your vehicle tested is printed on the pass certificate.
You need to use an approved MOT test centre to get your MOT. Only centres showing the blue sign with 3 white triangles can carry out your MOT.
Approved centres must show an official ‘MOT Test: Fees and Appeals’ poster on a public notice board on their premises. This must list contact details for your local DVSA area office.
If your MOT has expired
You can’t drive your vehicle on the road if the MOT has expired. You could be prosecuted if caught.
The only exception is if you’ve already booked an MOT and are driving your vehicle to the test centre.
Detailed information
Read the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency’s (VOSA’s) MOT inspection manuals and guides for a detailed breakdown of what’s covered in an MOT test.
2. After the test
If your vehicle passes the test
You’ll get an MOT certificate and your test record will be entered onto the secure central MOT database if your vehicle passes the test.
Mileage information on the test certificate
Test certificates issued after 18 November 2012 show the mileage recorded at the current and previous 3 test passes to help reduce vehicle crime.
This is shown on the certificate as the ‘odometer reading and history’.
If an earlier mileage is higher than a later one this could be due to:
- a mistake by an MOT tester
- a speedometer replacement
- ‘clocking’ or tampering with your vehicle’s mileage
Mistakes on an earlier mileage can't be changed. Check the latest mileage is correct and report any mistakes to the MOT centre within 7 days.
If your vehicle fails the test
You'll get a 'notification of failure' from the test centre if your vehicle fails the test. The failure will be recorded in the secure central MOT database.
You can still drive your vehicle if it fails the test and its existing MOT certificate is still valid (ie you got it tested before the expiry date). However, you might be stopped by police and prosecuted if your vehicle is unroadworthy.
If the vehicle fails the test and the certificate has expired, you can only drive it to:
- a pre-arranged appointment at a garage to have the repairs done
- a pre-arranged MOT test appointment
Your vehicle should be retested at the same test centre which did the original test.
3. Retests
Your vehicle may be able to have a partial retest for free or reduced MOT fee in the following cases.
Leaving your vehicle at the test centre
If the vehicle is left at the test centre for repair and retested before the end of 10 working days following the day it originally failed, then only a partial retest is needed. There is no fee.
Bringing your vehicle back to the test centre
Before the end of the next working day
You won’t have to pay again if the vehicle is brought back to the same test centre before the end of the next working day for a partial retest on one or more of the following items only:
- access panels
- battery
- bonnet
- bootlid
- brake pedal antislip
- break glass hammer (Class 5 vehicles only)
- doors (including hinges, catches and pillars)
- door open warning device (Class 5 vehicles only)
- dropsides
- electrical wiring
- emergency exits and signs (Class 5 vehicles only)
- entrance door remote control (Class 5 vehicles only)
- entrance/exit steps (Class 5 vehicles only)
- fuel filler cap
- headlamp cleaning or levelling devices (that doesn’t need a headlamp aim check)
- horn
- lamps (excluding headlamp aim)
- loading door
- main beam ‘tell-tale’
- mirrors
- rear reflectors
- registration plates
- seatbelts (but not anchorages)
- seatbelt load limiter
- seatbelt pre-tensioner
- seats
- sharp edges or projections
- stairs (Class 5 vehicles only)
- steering wheel
- tailboard
- tailgate
- trailer electrical sockets
- towbars (excluding body around anchorage points)
- tyre pressure monitoring system
- vehicle identification number (VIN)
- windscreen and glass
- windscreen wipers
- windscreen washers
- wheels and tyres (excluding motorbikes and motorbikes with sidecar)
Bringing your vehicle back within 10 working days
If the vehicle is removed from the test centre for repair and returned within 10 working days following the day it originally failed, then only a partial retest is needed. In this case a partial retest fee may be charged.
In all other cases, you'll need to get a full retest and pay the full MOT test fee again.
4. MOT test fees
The MOT test fee depends on the type of vehicle. The MOT fees shown are the maximum a test centre can charge and aren’t subject to VAT.
| Class | Vehicle type | Age first MOT needed (years) | MOT test fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Motorbike (engine size up to 200 cm3) | 3 | £29.65 |
| 1 | Motorbike with sidecar (engine size up to 200 cm3) | 3 | £37.80 |
| 2 | Motorbike (engine size over 200 cm3) | 3 | £29.65 |
| 2 | Motorbike with sidecar (engine size over 200 cm3) | 3 | £37.80 |
| 3 | 3-wheeled vehicles (up to 450kg unladen weight) | 3 | £37.80 |
| 4 | 3-wheeled vehicles (over 450kg unladen weight) | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Cars (up to 8 passenger seats) | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Motor caravans | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Quads (max unladen weight 400kg - for goods vehicles 550kg and max net power of 15kw) | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Dual purpose vehicles | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Private hire and public service vehicles (up to 8 seats) | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Ambulances and taxis | 1 | £54.85 |
| 4 | Private passenger vehicles and ambulances (9 to 12 passenger seats) | 1 | £57.30 |
| 4 | Goods vehicles (up to 3,000kg design gross weight) | 3 | £54.85 |
| 4a | Class 4 vehicles (9 to 12 passenger seats) with a seat belt installation check | n/a | £64 |
| 5 | Private passenger vehicles and ambulances (13 to 16 passenger seats) | 1 | £59.55 |
| 5 | Private passenger vehicles and ambulances (more than 16 passenger seats) | 1 | £80.65 |
| 5 | Playbuses | 1 | £80.65 |
| 5a | Class 5 vehicles (13 to 16 passenger seats) with a seatbelt installation check | n/a | £80.50 |
| 5a | Class 5 vehicles (more than 16 passenger seats) with a seatbelt installation check | n/a | £124.50 |
| 7 | Goods vehicles (over 3,000kg up to 3,500kg design gross weight) | 3 | £58.60 |
5. Problems with your test result
Appealing against a failed test
If your vehicle fails its MOT, you need to discuss your test results with the test centre before anyone starts repairs.
You can appeal a failed test result by filling in an appeal form 'VT17'.
You can also get the form from any MOT test centre or by calling:
Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA)
Telephone: 0300 123 9000
Find out about call charges.
Your appeal must be received within 14 working days of the ?test.
DVSA will then offer you an appointment within 5 days to recheck your vehicle and you'll need to pay the full test fee again.
Some or all of the test fee will be refunded to you if your appeal is successful.
If you think your car has passed incorrectly
Contact your local DVSA office as soon as possible - you can find the address from your MOT test station or by calling 0300 123 9000. Find out about call charges.
If your complaint is accepted, you'll get an appointment within 5 working days to recheck your vehicle for free as long as:
- no more than 3 months has passed since the MOT test if it's a corrosion-related problem
- no more than 28 days has passed for other defects
You'll get an inspection report listing any vehicle defects and advisory items.
DVSA can't help you take action against an MOT test centre even if it later decides to take its own action against the centre. You can take your own action against a test centre through Trading Standards, personal legal proceedings or reporting the centre to the police.
If you think your MOT certificate isn't genuine
Verify that your MOT certificate is genuine online by checking its MOT status.
If you're unhappy with your MOT service
Contact the area manager at your local DVSA office. You can find the address from your MOT test station or get it by calling 0300 123 9000. Find out about call charges.
6. Replacing a lost or damaged MOT certificate
You can get a duplicate MOT certificate from any MOT testing station if you have lost or damaged the original.
You'll need to give the vehicle registration number and either the original MOT test number, or V5C document reference number - this is on the V5C registration certificate.
The maximum fee for a duplicate certificate is £10, or half the full MOT test fee, whichever is lowest.
7. Vehicles exempt from MOT
Some vehicles don’t have to take an MOT test. These include:
- tractors
- goods vehicles powered by electricity
- any vehicle less than 3 years old
- cars and motorbikes made before 1960
A full list of currently exempt vehicles is on form V112. You need to fill in the form to tax your vehicle if it is exempt.
Lorries, buses and trailers
You must get an annual test for lorries, buses and trailers instead of an MOT. It’s sometimes called the annual vehicle test.
8. MOT text reminder service
Register for the MOT text reminder service to get messages telling you when your MOT is due.
If you don't get a text for whatever reason, you can't use this as an excuse for not getting your vehicle tested on time.
How the service works
Once you're registered you'll get 3 text reminders to your mobile phone to remind you of your MOT date.
The text reminder only tells you your final MOT due date. You can still renew your MOT up to 1 month before it expires.
The messages will be sent:
- 5 weeks before
- 2 weeks before
- the day before
You'll get a 4th message once the vehicle's passed its MOT to remind you to register again for the next MOT test reminder.
Your registration can't be transferred to another vehicle or different mobile phone number.
How much it costs
There's a one-off charge of £1.50, which is collected through your mobile phone network provider once your registration is accepted.
What you’ll need to use this service
You'll need:
- a UK registered mobile phone
- a UK registered vehicle
- the vehicle's latest MOT test number
- to be able to incur charges on the mobile phone or have the bill payer's permission
Check you've got enough credit if you're using a pay-as-you-go phone and make sure there is room in your text message inbox for new messages.
How to register
Text your MOT test number to 66848 (MOT4U) from your mobile phone.
The MOT test number has 12 digits and is in the top left corner of your MOT test certificate (VT20).
You'll be sent a message to say if you've registered successfully or not. If the information you send doesn't match with the vehicle record, or payment can't be taken (for example, if you've not got enough credit on your phone) then you won't be able to register and you won't be charged.
You can register as many vehicles as you want on the same phone, or register the same vehicle on different phones for £1.50 each time.
How long your registration lasts
Your registration will last for up to 13 months, and once your vehicle passes an MOT test or the due date for your MOT test passes, you'll stop getting reminder messages.
When your vehicle passes its MOT test you will need to register and pay again for the service.
Cancelling your registration
You can cancel your registration at any time by sending a STOP text message to 66848 (MOT4U).
If you cancel within 7 working days of successfully registering you can get a refund as long as you haven't been sent your 1st reminder text message.
To get a refund, send the following details to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) by email or post:
- your full name
- full postal address
- contact telephone number
- vehicle registration number
- current MOT test number
DVSA
motreminders-refund.it-solutions.gb@atos.net
DVSA
PO Box 415
Durham
DH99 1YZ
You'll get your refund by cheque within 30 days of a correctly submitted email or letter being received.
If you change your number plate
If you change your vehicle number plate (for example, get a personalised number) your MOT reminder text messages may refer to your old number plate.
9. Further information
Contact the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) for further information about MOTs.
DVSA
enquiries@vosa.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 123 9000
Find out about call charges