Penalties for Not Having a MOT

The annual MOT test for cars which are three years old isn’t an optional thing. Having a MOT certificate for your vehicle is a legal requirement, and if you ignore your obligations it could land you in hot water with the police. As a driver it’s your responsibility to know when your MOT runs out and to make sure you have your motorbike, car, van or other road vehicle tested. Forgetting isn’t an excuse. Expired MOT If you simply forget to renew your MOT when a year rolls around, then you run the risk of being stopped by the police. Many police cars are equipped with automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) software, which indicates each time a car passes which isn’t insured, taxed or has no MOT certificate. If you are pulled over, then the offence is likely to be dealt with by a fixed penalty notice. This is a fine of £100, and three points on your licence. This isn’t a criminal offence though so you won’t be classed as having a police record. Pay the fine, accept the points and get your car tested as soon as you can. The only exception to this is when your MOT has expired and you have no option but to drive your car to the garage for the test. If you’re stopped on the way the police will let you continue without a fine or points, but you’ll need to have solid evidence of a pre-booked appointment at a nearby garage. Failed MOT If your car fails its MOT, that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t drive it. It all depends on the reason for the failure. A major fail is something which isn’t dangerous, and you can still drive the car for the validity of the current MOT. If you have your car tested for example in the middle of June and the MOT doesn’t expire until the 30th June, you can still drive until the end of the month while you make arrangements for having your car fixed and then getting a new MOT before the old one expires. If however your vehicle fails its MOT due to a fault labelled as dangerous, that’s another matter. These sorts of faults need to be fixed right away. If the place where you have your MOT test done won’t or can’t fix it immediately, you’re breaking the law if you drive it away. The penalties for driving a car which has failed its MOT on a dangerous fault are much more severe than simply forgetting and driving around with an expired certificate. It’s not the mechanic’s job to physically stop you from driving your car away. But should you choose to do so and are stopped by the police, you’re facing a much stiffer fine of up to £2,500 and three points on your driving licence. So your choices are either to allow the garage to fix your car and have it retested, or arrange to have it towed away, or put on the back of a trailer for repair elsewhere. Don’t risk driving an unroadworthy car.