MOT test
How much an MOT costs, and the rules around the test
What does this guide cover? This page is the statutory MOT fee table for Great Britain: the maximum a centre may charge for a car, motorcycle or van, the rules on a free or paid retest, and when the first test falls due. The figures are maxima. Stations set their own price up to the cap.
How much does an MOT cost?
A garage may charge up to £54.85 for a class 4 car MOT, £29.65 for a class 1 motorcycle and £58.60 for a class 7 van. Those are statutory maxima, not prices. Most centres charge less, because the test is how they win the repair work. The figures have not changed since April 2010.
| Class | Vehicles | Maximum fee |
|---|---|---|
| Class 4 | Cars, light vans and small buses | £54.85 |
| Class 1 | Motorcycles up to 200cc | £29.65 |
| Class 7 | Goods vehicles 3,000kg to 3,500kg | £58.60 |
When is my MOT due?
In England, Scotland and Wales a car, van or motorcycle needs its first MOT by the third anniversary of first registration, taken from the V5C. Taxis, ambulances and vehicles with 9 to 12 passenger seats are tested from one year. Northern Ireland tests cars and motorcycles from four years old.
- There is no grace period. From the day after an MOT expires the vehicle cannot legally be used or parked on a public road, and you can be fined up to £1,000 for driving without a valid one.
- Two exceptions let you drive on an expired MOT: to a test you have already booked, and to or from somewhere for repairs.
- You can test up to a month minus a day before the current certificate runs out and keep the same renewal date, so the new certificate still expires on the same date the following year. Test earlier than that window and the new expiry becomes twelve months from the test date, which quietly moves your anniversary forward and throws away the rest of the cover you had paid for.
- The same window applies to a first MOT. Testing a nearly three year old car in the month before its third anniversary keeps the anniversary as the renewal date.
How much is an MOT retest?
A retest can be free, half the maximum fee, or a full test again. Leave the vehicle at the centre for the repair and retest within 10 working days and the partial retest is free. Take it away and the next working day return on listed items is also free. Other routes cost money.
- Leave the vehicle at the test centre for the repair and have it retested within 10 working days and you get a partial retest, covering only the items that failed. No fee may be charged for it. The vehicle has to stay on site the whole time.
- Take the vehicle away for the repair, bring it back to the same test centre before the end of the next working day it tests on, and the partial retest is also free, as long as everything it failed on comes from a set list of straightforward items. That list includes lamps, mirrors, wipers and washers, registration plates, the horn, seats, doors, the fuel filler cap and the battery.
- Take it away and bring it back to the same test centre later than that but still within 10 working days of the original test and you still only need a partial retest. The centre may charge for this, up to half the maximum fee for the class.
- Anything else means a full test at the full fee again. That includes going past the 10 working days and taking the vehicle to a different test centre, because both of the free routes depend on returning to the station that failed it.
- These are ceilings rather than prices. A centre can charge less than the maximum for a partial retest, or nothing at all.
Why do garages charge less than the maximum?
The published MOT fee is a maximum, not a fixed price. Garages often price the test below the cap to win the repair work that follows a fail. A cheap headline fee is not a reason to skip comparing quotes for the jobs the tester actually finds.
MOT test centres
Is the MOT fee the same everywhere?
No. The figures here are statutory maxima, not a national price. A class 4 car MOT cannot cost more than £54.85, but a centre can charge less for the test or for a partial retest. Authorised station lists are not price lists, so ring before you book.
Do I pay for a retest?
A retest is free if the vehicle stays on site for repair and is retested within 10 working days, or returns the next working day on listed items. Later within 10 working days may cost up to half the maximum. A different centre, or past that window, is a full fee.
Can I drive to an MOT without a certificate?
There is no grace period. From the day after an MOT expires the vehicle cannot legally be used or parked on a public road. Two exceptions let you drive on an expired MOT: to a test you have already booked, and to or from somewhere for repairs.
Does a new car need an MOT?
A new car in England, Scotland and Wales needs its first MOT by the third anniversary of the date it was first registered, taken from the V5C. Taxis, ambulances and vehicles with 9 to 12 passenger seats are tested from one year. Northern Ireland tests cars from four years old.
What happens if the MOT runs out?
There is no grace period. From the day after an MOT expires the vehicle cannot legally be used or parked on a public road, and you can be fined up to £1,000 for driving without a valid one. You may drive to a test already booked, or to or from repairs.
Checked on .