Check My MOT

What the MOT actually checks

An MOT is a legal annual test of roadworthiness and exhaust emissions for vehicles over three years old in England, Scotland and Wales. It is not a service and it does not check everything — but it does cover the safety-critical items that cause most accidents. Knowing what is tested, and what the common failures are, helps you avoid a surprise fail (and a bill) on test day.

The most common reasons cars fail

Year after year, the same handful of faults account for a large share of MOT failures — and most are cheap to fix or check beforehand:

• Lighting and signalling — a blown bulb is the single most common failure, and a two-minute check the night before can save you a retest.
• Tyres — below the 1.6mm legal tread limit, or visible damage. Tyres are also a safety and legal issue between tests.
• Brakes — worn pads, imbalance or poor performance on the rolling road.
• Suspension — worn or damaged components picked up on inspection.
• Driver's view of the road — wipers, washers, and anything obstructing the windscreen.

Advisories vs failures

A test result lists items by severity. A dangerous or major defect is an automatic fail and must be repaired before the car can be driven (a dangerous one means you should not drive it at all). A minor defect passes but should be fixed soon, and an advisory is a heads-up about something that may need attention before the next test — like tyres or pads wearing close to the limit. The lookup above shows these notes from the last test so you can plan repairs.

Key MOT rules worth knowing

• The maximum an MOT can cost for a car is capped by law at £54.85 — many garages charge less.
• You can get an MOT up to a month (minus a day) before it expires and keep the same renewal date — handy for spreading the cost from a service.
• Driving without a valid MOT can mean a fine and invalid insurance, except when driving to a pre-booked test.
• An MOT is separate from a service and from car tax — see all our UK driving tools.