Class 4 and 7 MOT in Streatham Hill

While the MOT test began life as a voluntary way for people to confirm the road-worthiness of their vehicles, it is anything but voluntary today. Failing to have a current MOT certificate these days can generate a fine as large as £2,500. Not having a valid MOT certificate will also invalidate your auto insurance, so if you get in an accident all the financial responsibility falls on your shoulders. There are also likely to be criminal charges pressed against you as well for operating an unauthorised vehicle.

As if that’s not enough, without a valid MOT you are not allowed to park on the street in Streatham Hill, meaning your car could be towed costing you hundreds of pounds more in towing and storage fees. And just in case you think you’ll avoid being seen by the police, keep this in mind: many surveillance cameras on British roads can automatically detect if your MOT is current when you pass by. If they discover it’s not, you’ll be sent a hefty fine through the post. If you want to avoid all that, bring your car to Fallsbrook Motors for a fast, convenient MOT in Streatham Hill.

What Is an MOT Test?

People new to car ownership are often surprised to learn about the MOT test. But MOT is nothing new. In fact, it recently celebrated its 60th anniversary. The idea of the MOT test (named for the now-defunct Ministry of Transport) was to help rid UK roads of dangerous vehicles, and it has actually done an outstanding job of that. Don’t believe it? Consider this: in the year before the MOT test was instituted there were about 8,000 fatalities on the roads of Great Britain.

Today, even though there are approximately 3 times as many vehicles on the road as there were in the 1960s, annual fatalities are down to less than 2,000. Some of the reduction can be attributed to things like disc brakes and airbags. But there is no denying that by removing unsafe vehicles from the road, the MOT test has also played a significant role in reducing motor vehicle fatalities, and serious injuries as well.

As we mentioned at the outset the MOT was a voluntary test when it was first introduced in 1960. At that time cars were checked to make sure their brakes, lights and steering were in proper working order. The initial idea was that only cars that were at least 10 years old would be tested and that those cars should come back for annual testing every subsequent year.

The initial results were an eye-opener with an incredibly high fail rate of the cars that were voluntarily brought in. As a result, after just 6 months the test became mandatory and the minimum age of cars to be tested was reduced from 10 to 7 years. In 1967 the minimum age for eligibility was reduced once again, this time to 3 years, where it remains.

The current MOT test checks tyre integrity, tread depth, windscreen wipers, direction indicators, brakes, brake lights, horn, exhaust and integrity of the chassis. It also looks at seat belts, battery and wiring, and the accuracy of the speedometer.

People sometimes fear mechanics will use an MOT test to invent some problem that allegedly needs immediate attention. You will never experience those kinds of games at Fallsbrook Motors. If your car is roadworthy, we’ll issue you an MOT and be done with it. If it’s not, we’ll explain exactly what the problem is and give you the option of having it fixed. To make an appointment for your MOT call Fallsbrook on 020 8769 1184.