A LAWYER has explained how an unusual MOT loophole could force you to take the test three times – and land you a £2,500 fine and a ban if you don’t.
Drivers could be invalidating their insurance and even committing a crime without realising it thanks to a common misconception about the rules.
Daniel ShenSmith, known online as the Black Belt Barrister, revealed the little-known issue on his YouTube channel.
He said: “Getting an MOT is fairly simple, but so is getting things wrong.
“There’s one mistake that lots of people make but don’t even realise it’s a mistake until it’s too late.
“You cannot drive or even park your vehicle on a public road if the MOT has run out.”
However, he emphasised that the MOT only certifies the vehicle as roadworthy “at the point in time that it was tested”.
While it is only required annually on most vehicles, it does not cover the whole year.
If at any point during that year your motor sustains damage, you need to get it tested again to make sure it is still above the legal safety requirements.
That’s not just for when you get into a crash either, as something as seemingly innocent as going over a pothole could cause enough invisible damage to things like the suspension or brake setup to make it unsafe.
And if it fails that second test, you’ll have to pay for the repairs necessary to get it back into roadworthy condition before taking a third one to re-certify it.
Given that MOT’s cost £54 a pop and repairs can easily run into the hundreds of pounds, even relatively minor damage could become pricey fast.
However, it’s even more costly to shirk the rules as driving a car in a dangerous condition is an offence, carrying a fine of up to £2,500.
Having a valid MOT is no defence if that car is not roadworthy when you get in an accident, while ignorance of the law won’t get you far either as drivers have a responsibility to at least make basic safety checks.
Even worse, if you’re caught doing it twice within a three year spell, there is a mandatory penalty of a six-month driving ban on top of any fine.
It will also likely lead to your insurance being invalidated, leaving you liable for any damage caused.
Daniel added: “A lot of people mistakenly assume that because it’s got an MOT and it’s valid, it’s therefore been certified safe to be on the road.
“They don’t necessarily consider it to be dangerous.
“However, using a vehicle in a dangerous condition is a fairly serious offence.”
He did go on to explain that you can avoid disqualification and any points on your licence if you can prove that you didn’t know or have “reasonable cause to suspect” that your vehicle was not roadworthy.
But this is a very tricky thing to prove in itself and can still leave you open to a hefty fine.
It comes after Daniel sat down exclusively with SunMotors to bust some of the biggest driving myths many Brits believe on the roads.
