Almost two million vehicles could be driving illegally on UK roads without a valid MOT, new research from fast-fit chain Kwik Fit has revealed.
The company cited figures from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, which estimated that one in five (19.5 percent) of the vehicles that were eligible for a six-month MOT extension during the first lockdown in 2020 are yet to be retested.
Even the final cars that received an extension have now passed their extended expiry date. Kwik Fit calculated 1.86 million vehicles still haven’t had a new MOT. It added vehicles have not had a valid certificate for an average of 3.4 months.
With cars covering fewer miles over the last year, Kwik Fit reported the vehicles that have been bought in for assessment were more likely to pass the test. The company estimated the failure rate is up to 10 percent lower than in a normal year.
As a result, it warned those cars that haven’t been tested in more than a year may not be in a roadworthy condition. An estimated 600,000 of the 1.86 million vehicles may fail the test.
In order to encourage drivers to get their cars tested, Kwik Fit – which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year – has cut the price of an MOT to £19.71 for the rest of the month.
Drivers urged to make sure cars are safe
“It may be that shifting the expiry dates with the extension has caused the MOT to slip from drivers’ minds, or perhaps they have been using their car so little that they have forgotten about having it tested,” said Eric Smith, MOT scheme manager at Kwik Fit.
“Some owners may think that because they’ve not been using their car it will be just as they left it. However, parts will rust or wear with little use, bulbs may fail or windscreen wipers start to perish.
“We would urge drivers to make sure they are both safe and legal before heading out on to the road as restrictions ease.”
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