Coronavirus and the MOT

[92220]

Hi Guys and Gals.

This is not strictly in the right place, but I posted it here because more people are likely to see it.

If your car is due for an MOT while this coronavirus crisis is with us, the Government has given a 6 month extension to all MOTs that expire AFTER March 30th this year, so most have no need to worry about getting it done. This is an excerpt from the Gov website:-



Guidance



Coronavirus: MOTs due from 30 March 2020

Your car, van or motorcycle’s MOT expiry date will be extended by 6 months if it’s due on or after 30 March 2020 - but you must keep your vehicle safe to drive.


Bob.

[goldstar31]

My car is also in lockdown.

Seemingly(??) my sit on lawn mower and my disabled scooter are still available

Hmmmm


Happy Easter

[Deleted]

Mine's due in early June...I mentioned this to my son...he said he'll still get it done when due...The MOT station he uses for his garage is running as normal. But yes for those who wish there's a 6 month extension from end March

Pete

Pete

[gwr14xx]

Also, according to the Government website, it is the car owners responsibility to make sure the 6 month extension has been applied his/her vehicle - if not, you will not be able to re-tax it, and your insurance will be invalidated. To check - go to the DVLA website/ MOT history - it should show the new extended expiry date - if not, contact the DVLA immediately (it may take a couple of days to get it corrected!

Eddie.

[Roger]

Sadly my Smart Car was issued a fail notice before the extension, so now I can't get it MOT'd until this is over and it doesn't qualify for the extension.
Fortunately we do have another car, so it's not a big issue.

[keith1500]

Got my Mitzs MOTed yesterday. The garage had social distancing in place. No problem.
I went for a walk..

When I got home I washed my hands and then cleaned the inside of the car as a precaution and washed my hands again.

If I had thought about it I might have taken antibacterial wipes with me.

[Roger]

Apr 10, 2020 10:48:58 GMT keith1500 said:

Got my Mitzs MOTed yesterday. The garage had social distancing in place. No problem.
I went for a walk..

When I got home I washed my hands and then cleaned the inside of the car as a precaution and washed my hands again.

If I had thought about it I might have taken antibacterial wipes with me.

Although that sounds reasonable enough, it does violate the rules the Government has set out.

[Jo]

There is going to be a big que for MoTs in about 6 months time

Might be worth booking it in early.

Jo

[Deleted]

You can get your MOT now if you wish...testing stations are open, they count as essential business for repair.
I noted something from a lawyer the other day about car insurance...evidently if you drive without a valid reason as stipilated under the current rules you insurance is mist likely null and void.

[Roger]

Apr 10, 2020 12:08:18 GMT @greenglade said:

You can get your MOT now if you wish...testing stations are open, they count as essential business for repair.
I noted something from a lawyer the other day about car insurance...evidently if you drive without a valid reason as stipilated under the current rules you insurance is mist likely null and void.

That's not the problem. Their business is essential, but getting a non essential MOT is not a valid reason for leaving the house, even if you try to call it exercise. You're coming into contact with others on your exercise, and that's not allowed.

[Deleted]

Not always the case.. my son is contracted with them to do the jobs their own mechanics can't do...so he is there regularly collecting/delivering cars...if we are still in lockdown middle of June, he will take the car for me after he's checked it first. If we aren't I'll take it as usual

[keith1500]

Given the age of my vehicle I felt it was important to know it still safe. A reasonable risk assessment I think.

[jma1009]

I was aware of the MOT 6 month extension, and my MOT was due 18th April, but as my car had developed a 'squeek squeek squeek' on the driver's side front wheel (front wheel bearing I thought?), I thought it prudent to get it MOT'd on 20th March by the garage who have looked after all my successive cars for the last 19 years...

Good job I did, as they found 3 dangerous parts that required replacement, though the driver's side front bearing was ok. Cost me quite a bit.

Never considered it at the time as to whether I was within Government guidelines for getting this done, but as no courtesy car, the 1 hour 20 minute walk back and to return each way was my exercise (twice, not once) for the day.

Cheers,

Julian

[coniston]

Apr 10, 2020 14:07:48 GMT Roger said:

Apr 10, 2020 12:08:18 GMT @greenglade said:

You can get your MOT now if you wish...testing stations are open, they count as essential business for repair.
I noted something from a lawyer the other day about car insurance...evidently if you drive without a valid reason as stipilated under the current rules you insurance is mist likely null and void.

That's not the problem. Their business is essential, but getting a non essential MOT is not a valid reason for leaving the house, even if you try to call it exercise. You're coming into contact with others on your exercise, and that's not allowed.

That's a difficult one to generalise, if you're isolating at home and you apply the government 6 months MOT extension then it is probably not essential. If however you are a key worker or similar and you need your car to travel to and from work, then a current MOT inspection is probably acceptable, particularly if the owner/driver is not confident in assessing the safety of their vehicle (that may open a can of worms here) which could also apply to the first case if a car is required for essential journey such as shopping. It's the same with all the restrictions, no one rule can be applied to everyone so it still relies in common sense judgment, something it is becoming apparent is sadly lacking in a large proportion of the population.

Chris D  

[runner42]

My last MOT was in the mid 1970s and it was a yearly trauma because the cars invariably failed first time. I am glad living in South Australia that we don't have a form of yearly testing for cars, although some eastern states do. Although the police can defect your car and you have to clear the defects and submit it to a police check before you can use it on the road again. The police checks cover obvious things like brakes, steering, windscreen wipers and washers, mufflers and tyres. To be stopped by the police for a roadside check, the car has to show some obvious defect like a leaky exhaust. 

The biggest concern with the MOT was rust due to the salting of the roads in winter, in comparison South Australia is a very dry climate and rust is rare even for 20 year old cars. 

Given that MOT testing stations are still operating; to provide a 6 month extension does signify that it is not critical to safety and car owners might see it as setting a precedent. Would it have been better to not provide the 6 month extension, but turn a blind eye for 6 months to drivers using their cars without a valid MOT certificate?

Brian

 

[92220]

Unfortunately that would be an even greater precedent, Brian. You can't have the government turning a 'blind eye' to people breaking the law, however trivial. They had to provide the extension because they, themselves, have banned people from leaving home for non essential trips.

Bob.

[JonL]

I think this thread sums up one thing: When laws have been in place for years they get tested and assessed as they run through the usual legal processes; when things have to be brought in in a hurry a lot of grey areas become apparent. I guess all we can do is our best.

[Deleted]

While on the subject of MOT's but not in relation to the virus, one thing that I don't agree with is the law were you no longer need an MOT for a historic cars, so those older than 40 years.
This makes no sense to me, no road tax I agree with, but not official check on road worthyness is stupid. Yes I accept their reasoning that in general owners of such vehicles look after them far more than your average owner. But, we are no longer talking of a morris miner which probably takes longer to reach 30 than a fit guy on a pushbike...there are a few 200mph cars from the 80's about to reach historic status, my own will be there in 6 years and that's way past 180mph...
Personally I think MOT's should be mandatory for all...IMHO, of course..

Pete

[coniston]

Apr 12, 2020 8:47:54 GMT @greenglade said:

While on the subject of MOT's but not in relation to the virus, one thing that I don't agree with is the law were you no longer need an MOT for a historic cars, so those older than 40 years.
This makes no sense to me, no road tax I agree with, but not official check on road worthyness is stupid. Yes I accept their reasoning that in general owners of such vehicles look after them far more than your average owner. But, we are no longer talking of a morris miner which probably takes longer to reach 30 than a fit guy on a pushbike...there are a few 200mph cars from the 80's about to reach historic status, my own will be there in 6 years and that's way past 180mph...
Personally I think MOT's should be mandatory for all...IMHO, of course..

Pete

I agree with your sentiment Pete, the issue I can see is there is only 1 MOT standard and many cars for 40+years simply would not meet the requirements. An option would be to have an MOT that is representative according to the age of the vehicle but I guess that would be too much of a headache for government to implement and manage. Far simpler to trust the very few owners of old cars (in comparison to the number of cars on the road) to maintain their 'pride and joy' in good mechanical order. I suspect there had neem quite some discussion and investigation of statistics before the decision was made.

Chris D

[uuu]

Is it also right that you don't need an MOT for a truck with a fixed organ?

Wilf