When does your vehicle requires testing?
If you wish to preserve the expiry date of your current M.O.T certificate you can present your vehicle for M.O.T by not more than 28 days before the expiry date of your current certificate. For example, if the current certificate was due to expire on 1 April 2008, and the vehicle was presented on or after 2 March 2008, the certificate would run from the test date until 1 April 2009.
The same rule would also apply when the vehicle is presented within a calendar month of its first MOT.
If the vehicle is tested more than 28 days before its due date, the MOT will only run for twelve months.
When does your vehicle requires testing?
If a vehicle is registered with no prior use on the road, the MOT will be required three years after the date of registration, For example, a vehicle ‘from new’ on 1 April 2008 will require its MOT no later than 1 April 2011.
About the MOT
The first test is required once a vehicle is three years old. There are different rules if you use it as a taxi. When your vehicle is tested, the MOT looks at some important items to see if it meets the legal requirements. You should be aware that the MOT certificate is not a guarantee of the general mechanical condition of a vehicle, but an evidence that on at least one day a year your vehicle met the minimum road safety standard,by law vehicles should be capable of passing the MOT ever day!