Can You Drive If You Know Your Car Would Fail An MOT?

So you know your car would fail its MOT test if you were to take it right now. Where does that leave you in the eyes of the law & your insurance company? Do you need to do anything? Let Scrap Car Comparison explain all.

Driving Your Car If You Know It will Fail Its MOT

Almost all drivers have had issues with their vehicle at one time or another, but opted to “keep and eye on it” rather than take it in to a garage to get seen to. It’s not recommended, but it’s totally understandable – car maintenance can be very expensive. But what if something’s wrong with your car that you know is a little bit unsafe? Like, for example, something on our comprehensive list of things that will fail an MOT.

Of course, our advice would be to get it fixed right away, but what does the law state? Well, let’s quote the DVSA directly from the MOT paperwork, shall we?

So what does this mean? Simply put, a valid MOT doesn’t give you a free pass to neglect your vehicle’s maintenance over the next 12 months. Your car is safe at the time of inspection, but if it becomes unsafe at any point afterward, you must fix it.

What Happens If Your Car Isn’t Safe To Drive?

If your vehicle has suffered wear and tear, or even crash damage, that means it still works but isn’t safe to be on the road, you absolutely should not drive it. Doing so can result in massive punishments if the poor state of your vehicle is noticed by the police. You could be punished with:

• Three penalty points on your licence
• A £2,500 fine
• Being suspended from driving altogether

Therefore, if you want to avoid those punishments, get your vehicle repaired as quickly as possible. If you can’t afford to, you’ll need to keep it off the road – ideally on your driveway or in your garage. Bear in mind that even if it’s left on the road and not driven, you could still end up in trouble if the damage is especially dangerous.

What Happens If I Get My MOT Done Early?

Getting your MOT done early can be helpful if you know you won’t be able to arrange it for around the time it’s actually due. Doing so doesn’t have a huge impact on your vehicle in the present, but might change a few things in the future.

If you get your MOT test done really early (see the next section for specifics) then it means your expiry date for the following year will match this year’s date. This could end up being “a problem for future you” which could come back to bite you if it’s not suitable in 12 months time.

If you happen to try and sell your vehicle to a private buyer at some point, it could also go one of two ways; they might see it as a sign that you’ve taken extra good care of your vehicle, or if they’re particularly suspicious, they might think you’ve identified something that will become a problem so you opted to put it through its MOT before that issue develops.

How Early Can You Do Your MOT?

Most people dread taking their car in for its MOT, so wouldn’t dream of booking it in early! However, if you’re unable to get it MOT tested when it’s due for any reason (like being out of the country, for example) then you can do it early.

Your car can be MOT tested at any point throughout the year, but if you take it to the garage after, for example, six months, you’ll be issued a pass certificate valid for 12 months from that new date.

It’s actually possible to get your car MOT tested early and retain the original expiry date, but there is a catch – it’ll have to be within one month, minus one day, of the expiry date. For example, if your MOT is actually due to expire on June the 15th, you can have it tested as early as May the 16th. If it passes, your new MOT will be valid until June the 15th the following year.

Unable to get it repaired so that it passes its next MOT? Sell it with Scrap Car Comparison and get rid of that problem in no time.

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Or, visit our MOT failure hub for guides on everything related to MOT, and how to navigate your options after a fail.

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