Ad. The annual MOT test is a part of life, and as soon as your vehicle is three-years old, it should have it’s first MOT. Here’s everything you need to know about the MOT test.
It Is a Legal Requirement
Since the MOT test was enshrined in law in 1960, all vehicles over the age of three must have the test completed annually. Some vehicles must be tested from their first year: these are taxis, ambulances and passenger-carrying vehicles.
There is No Grace Period!
If you wait until the day of your car’s third birthday, you are at risk of breaking the law unless you can find someone to complete the test there and then. There is an urban legend floating about that you have two weeks after the registration date to get your test done: this is not true at all. Rather, you can get the test done in the thirty days before the deadline without losing your anniversary date – this is probably where the misunderstanding arose. If your MOT date is drawing closer, book MOT today at Elite Direct London branch
An Overview of the Test
The test is divided into six sections: interior checks, exterior checks, under the hood, under the car, brakes, and emissions. The MOT inspector will ensure that your car is safe to be on the road, with no risk to other road users, that you can operate the vehicle safely, that you can see and be seen, that the vehicle is in such a state that it will remain under your control, even in an emergency (being able to steer to the side of the road and safely stop there, for example) and that it can be identified by law enforcement, if necessary. From an environmental point of view, your exhaust will be tested for emissions which must be below a certain level. The full list can be found here.
What’s New?
The above list is updated periodically in line with tightening environmental protections and advances in motoring technology, to ensure that everyone is kept safe on the UK’s busy road network – and this is something that is quantifiable: casualties (both injuries and deaths) from road traffic accidents consistently trend downwards, year on year (with a small blip for the quiet roads of the Covid years) as road safety keeps more people safe, healthy and alive than ever before. Diesel particulate levels is one of the latest updates, along with even more stringent emissions allowances as ecological concerns take on great urgency.