What it costs
Set by the government. Garages can't charge more than this — most charge less.
The four words that actually matter
Every fault on the test sheet gets one of these labels — the label decides what happens next.
Dangerous
Immediate risk. The car fails outright.
Cannot be drivenMajor
Fails the test, but still safe enough to get to a repair.
Drivable to a repairMinor
Doesn't fail the test, but it's on the record.
Car passesAdvisory
A heads-up that something's starting to wear.
Car passesWhat's actually checked
The DVSA groups the test into six areas. Tap one to see what's covered — you don't need to read all of these, just the ones you're curious about.
Interior checks
seatbelts, seats, controls
- Seatbelts & anchorage points
- Seats & seat backs lock in place
- Doors open and latch from inside
- Mirrors — condition and fixing
- Horn — loud enough, right type of sound
- Steering wheel & column play
- Footbrake pedal condition
- Warning lights on the dash (airbag, ABS, brakes)
- Speedometer working
- Driver's view not obstructed by stickers etc.
Grouped for readability — the official DVSA MOT inspection manual splits these into more detailed sub-sections. See the source note below for the full manual.
Your car failed. Now what?
Whether you can drive it, how a retest works, and what it means next to a service.
What if I just... drive it anyway? fines & penalties
No valid MOT at all
Applies even if the car's genuinely fine to drive — it's the certificate that's required. Usually invalidates your insurance too.
Driving with a Dangerous defect
Applies regardless of whether your old certificate has technically expired.
What actually fails cars most
When to book it timing & the date rule
A car needs its first MOT by the third anniversary of registration, then one every year. A certificate lasts a year from the test.
You can test it up to a month minus a day before it runs out and keep the same renewal date — so if yours expires on 15 May, book any time from 16 April and next year is still 15 May. Test it earlier than that and you lose the anniversary, which quietly shortens the year you paid for.
Once it has run out you cannot drive or park on the road at all, except to a pre-arranged test or to somewhere it is being repaired.
Its whole history is public including the mileage
Every test since 2005 is on the official record, and anyone can look it up from the registration alone. It shows each pass or fail, the mileage recorded at every test, what failed, and anything flagged as a minor problem.
That makes it the single most useful thing to check before buying a used car — a mileage that jumps backwards, or the same advisory ignored three years running, tells you more than the seller will.
Check any car's MOT historyLeave it at the same garage
Fixed and retested within 10 working days, at the centre that tested it — free.
£0 retest feeTake it away, back by the next working day
Free, but only for a limited list of items — things like lights, wipers, mirrors, doors. Not tyres or brakes.
£0 — limited items onlyBack within 10 working days
Same test centre, within 10 working days — reduced "partial retest" fee. Miss it, and it's a full-price test again.
Reduced fee