New MOT Laws
Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2015 4:25 pmBorrowed from another forum.
Apparently this became enforceable November 2015.
and:
Just in case some of you didn't realise.
Historically if you put your car in early for MOT and it failed, you were still legal to drive.
This is no longer the case.
If your car fails it has no MOT even if your old certificate has a month to run
Apparently this became enforceable November 2015.
and:
New EU MOT rules starting from 2017
Despite sweeping changes to the MOT Test demanded by the EU which took effect at the beginning of 2012, even more far reaching changes will take affect after 2017.
For the motorist the biggest change will be that cars with defects which render them ‘dangerous to drive’ could be banned from the road, although whether or not that will happen in Britain is as yet undecided. There will also be changes around how vehicles’ emissions are checked and regarding electronic components which have a safety related function, such as adaptive braking, cruise control and traction control.
The new EU rules are in the form of a Directive, so exactly how they will appear in the MOT Test can be decided by the British Government – and the Department for Transport, working with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency will in due course be working out the details. Until that task is completed it won’t be possible to say exactly how motorists will be affected.
Historic vehicles and ‘substantial’ change
One aspect of the new EU rules is a change in the definition of an ‘Historic Vehicle’ which can be exempted from MOT Test. Whereas currently the British MOT exemption cut-off is 1960, the new EU rules apply the exemption when a vehicle is 30 years old – unless it has undergone “substantial change” from how it was when manufactured. Again, this could affect the owners of historic vehicles, depending on what the Department for Transport (DfT) define as a ‘substantial change’.
We understand that the DfT will be running a ‘workshop’ with interested parties to consult on issues surrounding the new EU rules on such Historic Vehicles.
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EU wants to 'split' MOTs and repairs…
UK motorists would be massively inconvenienced by the EU's latest MOT proposals
-Many EU member states recently rejected a raft of 'new MOT road safety measures' from the EU which would have entailed increased costs to both the respective states and to motorists in those states.
-The measures were rejected both on the grounds of cost and on the technical issue of the EU's right to impose a 'Regulation' of this kind on member states.
-The European Parliament has responded by suggesting, among other things, that MOT Testing Stations should not be allowed to carry out repairs to vehicles which they had been or would be involved in Testing.
-This measure would result in inconvenience and expense for the car driver at the very least, with the likelihood of large conglomerates establishing massive Testing-only centres outside towns and cities.
Last summer, the European Commission proposed a number of significant changes to the European MOT Test, with which the British Government would have to comply, which would not only have significantly inconvenienced motorists, but would also have cost the country almost two billion pounds in unnecessary costs.
The majority of those proposals were rejected by member states of the European Union, so the Commission had to put forward a much watered-down version for scrutiny by the European Parliament. The Parliament, however, decided to recommend some further changes of their own, the most significant of which was to propose that in future MOT Testing Stations would not be able to carry out MOT repairs; and Testers would not be able to repair a vehicle for which they were going to do the re-Test.
Extra time, inconvenience and cost
In Britain this would seriously inconvenience motorists, by forcing them to make three different journeys should their cars fail the MOT. The first journey to a 'stand alone' MOT Testing Station which would not be allowed to carry out repairs. Then another journey to a vehicle service and repair business to get the work done, and finally, a trip back to the Testing Station for a re-test, and probably another full fee to pay.
This is in contrast to the current system whereby if a car fails the MOT, and the garage can repair it straight away, then assuming it is convenient for the car owner, that is what happens. This is especially convenient when the failure is very simple, a small bulb, or a wiper blade perhaps.
Clearly the changes suggested by the European Parliament would not only cost motorists more, but would be hugely inconvenient too – especially for working mothers, for example, who simply haven't got the time to plan for three different trips around the school run and all the other things they have to do to get their cars MOT Tested and repaired at different places.
I read a nasty story on the Defender forums about someone who purchased one and it turns out the chap had loads of faults, had removed dash glass taped over all the slots as it was easier than getting to the bulbs and put it back together then MOT'd it for it to pass.
