MOT status

[davef]

I have been looking at the possibility of MOT exemption for my series 3, it was booked in for service and MOT the week of the shutdown which not surprisingly cancelled by garage. I looked into process of MOT exemption which as always with government rules as clear as mud and it seemed to suggested that I had to wait until tax was due before I could claim exemption.

However I checked the status of MOT of my car and found that status reports no results returned rather than no MOT, which was reported for newer car with no MOT, does this mean that my car is already exempt from MOT's. I had not put in any paperwork as per the gov web site.

Would like to know so that I can give the car a run rather than using the daily driver for a food shopping trip.

Thanks

[Tom W]

I think so. My Rover is declared exempt, and that comes up with no MOT and a green box when I check the Tax & MOT status. If I check on the MOT history Gov website, I get a red box warning me the MOT has run out and I could be fined. There’s some small print that says it could be exempt, but the red box is offputting.

I only had to declare exemption at the time I re-taxed it. Before that, when the MOT ran out, I think it just rolled over to no-MOT automatically.

If when you check the Tax & MOT status on the gov website, you get 2 green boxes, your good to go, probably.

[mgcjag]

Hi ....over 40 year old vehicles are automatically mot exempt. .....under Covid rules from 30th March there us a 6mth Mot exemption from testing .....for 40 year old when it comes to Vehicle tax time you cannot renew your road tax ( even tbough its £0) unless you have a valid mot.......this is when you declare you vehicle MOT exempt so that the road tax can be issued....However it is your responsibility to ensure that you vehicle is fully maintained and would meet the mot requirements......Steve

[malcolm]

I still M.O.T my 1969 car. The "nil" tax ddue came up recently, which of course I did on line, but there was no mention of M.O.T/exemption etc - presumably that's because the system knew my car had one?

[44DHR]

Once you get a Vehicle Tax reminder, (V11Z), or go to un-SORN an old 40 plus year vehicle to tax it, if the Vehicle Tax reminder states “This Vehicle may require an appropriate test”, you simply fill in a self certified form, a V112. This is because not all 40 year plus vehicles are automatically MOT exempt, as this exception only is applies if they have not been “substantially changed in the last 30 years”.
This V112 form available online and just requires you to write in the vehicle registration and sign the form that it is exempt from an MOT as it falls into category “r” from the list on the back of the form. Category “r” is for a vehicle registered or manufactured 40 years ago and has not been substantially changed.
Often the Vehicle Tax reminder will state that a completed form V112 is required if the vehicle is exempt from testing in the documents required section - even though the V11Z states the tax is Nil, but that’s a simple form to complete and take when taxing a Vehicle at a Post Office.
This situation even happens when the V5C states that the vehicle is a “Historic Vehicle”, when you would have assumed by being shown on the V11Z as a Historic Vehicle, (built before 1st January 1979), that an MOT was not going to be required, as it would have to have been first registered more than 40 years ago, but it’s this modification element of the MOT exemption that you have to confirm on form V112.
Regards,
Dave

[MarkS]

Lots of useful information.. But what happens if you have already 'taxed' your vehicle, but did not put in the V112 form at the time (I believe you have to go with it in person to the post office) And then a few weeks later the MOT runs out.. How do you register your declaration that it has not been modified? I've just tried to give the form to the post office, and they won't accept. They say I have to wait until the tax comes up again... So, is the car MOT exempt and legal without the declaration?

[mgcjag]

If you car is over 40 years old it is mot exempt. .......however to renew road tax you need to declare it is exempt. .this is done on a V112 if your getting your tax at a post office...Steve

[MarkS]

Just found more info on this.

The V112 is only to declare that it is a vehicle of historic interest in that it has not been modified recently. It is an administrative process, AND to help owners think about wether their cars have been substantially modified..
It is not connected with the MOT exemption, which is automatic once the car is 40 years old, and there is no 'requirement' of the owner to make any kind of declaration of its age (or MOT exemption) to anyone.

[chrisfell]

“ ... So, is the car MOT exempt and legal without the declaration?”

No.

“ the MOT exemption, which is automatic once the car is 40 years old”

This is not true. The only thing that is automatic is that the car will require an MOT every year. The exemption is optional, not automatic. The owner / keeper must apply for it.

However, as I have just discovered, although the current MOT on my car expires on 18th May, I don’t have to renew it until 18th November. The renewal date is being extended by six months automatically. In my case the extended date was posted on the DVLA website today.

So without doing anything my car will not require testing to be driven after 18th May. But if I want to claim MOT exemption I must wait until the next time it is due to be taxed, next April. In the meanwhile, on or before 18th November, the car will have to be tested at a registered MOT test centre.

This is not permission to drive a car which could fail an MOT for another six months. Regardless of whether the car has a current MOT or an MOT with an extended renewal date, the condition of the car must at all times it is being driven on the roads, such that it could pass an MOT. Driving a car with a dangerous fault will risk the driver’s licence being endorsed, or worse.

[Joes66]

Hi all
I just got a renew tax form in the post for my 66 midget
It gave 3 options to renew and I chose online
I went online and put in vehicle details and it automatically gave me the option to declare it mot exempt
Clicked the box and it was taxed
Vehicle is declared as historic
Joe

[MarkS]

I got my info from the Department for Transport. It was written in January 2019. So perhaps now it has been superseded.
Does anyone have the current official wording?

[BRM]

This is not true. The only thing that is automatic is that the car will require an MOT every year. The exemption is optional, not automatic. The owner / keeper must apply for it.

No, this is not true. I was confused by this issue at first but when you get your head around it, it's actually quite simple.

There is no such thing as claiming exemption. As others have said, if your car is over 40 years old - and not substantially modified - it IS MoT exempt. Full stop.

You may choose to carry on getting it MoT tested, that is entirely up to you and of no real interest to the authorities. Even if your car has a current MoT certificate it is still exempt !

If you need to renew your "tax" and your car has a current MoT, no mention will be made of it because it is not an issue.

It you subsequently decide you don't want to MoT the car any more, just don't bother doing it - the car is exempt ! All that will happen is that when the tax is due the records will show no current MoT and you will have to declare, if I remember the wording correctly, that the car is ELIGIBLE for exemption, or not ineligible by virtue of being modified. Having confirmed that it will issue your tax.

It goes without saying that the car must legally be kept roadworthy regardless of your choice.

[chrisfell]

I’m not going to labour this point, but...
I have not declared my car exempt from MOTs. By doing nothing I must to continue to have my car subject to annual MOTs. Thus, when one expires, I must get a new one. Not having a valid MOT or having filed a V112, is an offence (fine up to £2,500 plus three points). It matters not one jot that the car might be exempt. That exemption needs to be declared, it isn’t automatic and does not apply until and unless that declaration has been made and filed. The only thing automatic is a car’s eligibility, but it still has to be declared.

[MarekH]

There seems to be some confusion here.

It's just a car and normally cars first registered after 1960 and over three years old need an MOT.

There is a category of vehicles called "Historic". Any car over 40 years old can have its category changed to "Historic" if the keeper so desires when they next tax it.

You can next tax it tomorrow if you want by declaring it SORN and then retaxing it.

If you have changed the category to Historic, you now have the option to fill out a v112, regarding MOT status.

If you do that and make the declaration that it has not been substantially changed in its technical characteristics during the last thirty years, as defined, then the car is also declared MOT exempt, but only until the car is next taxed.

If you change the technical characteristics of the main components of the car as defined on the back of the v112, then you are obliged to submit it for MOT.

When you renew your tax, its current MOT status is always assumed as the default, so cars with no v112 declaration against them still need to be MOT'd, whilst cars which have had the v112 declaration made are by default MOT exempt and you are confirming your v112 declaration still applies.

(There is currently a six month extension for expiring MOTs, but that has nothing to do with your current MOT status.)

kind regards
Marek

[mgcjag]

Hi Chris...your car does not need an mot and as such you cannot be fined for not haveing one.........the "exemption form" is not mot related and you do not need to fill one in to exempt you from mot.....Road tax..to obtain this you need a valid mot with at least one month remaining untill it expires however if you renew at the post office and dont have a valid mot you can produce a v112 to state that you are mot exempt.......if you renew on line there is no v112.....instead as you proceed to renew your tax the system will ask is your vehicle mot exempt..a tick yes will get you taxed.......At any stage you can mot your vehicle or not mot.......full details are on the dvla website..Steve

[MarkS]

[MarkS]

[madjack4]

Hi my honda cbx100 became exempt this year when i went to tax it at post office it had been changed over automatically by dvla with no forms to fill in no mot needed no tax to pay but first time u have to go to post office carnt do it online

Regards

[MarkS]

I had one of them once. it was a -T reg aswell

[44DHR]

Hi Chris,
Been away from this Forum and surprised to see the flurry of posts.
Are you clear now on the situation regarding automatic exemption for MOTs on Historic Vehicles, (those defined as such on the V5C and over 40 years old) and how this relates to the completely separate issue of requirements for MOTs when applying for Vehicle Tax ?
I tried to explain at my post #5 that the Self Declaration Form V112 is used when taxing a vehicle at a Post Office, (although this Self Declaration can also be done when taxing on-line by simply ticking a box), as the form begins with the statement that “Evidence of an MOT test is normally required for taxing purposes.”
I suppose another way of looking at it is that the Historic Vehicle could have been substantially changed in the preceding year and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency would be unaware of this, so it is your “duty” to confirm there have been no such change. So, with respect to the Tax application, you are making a declaration that the information you are providing that it is “a Vehicle registered or manufactured 40 years ago and which has not been substantially changed in the last 30 years”, remains a valid statement to claim exemption from MOT testing in order to tax the vehicle.
Steve, Mark and Brian are correct, but I think Marek’s post #14 was the most comprehensive in explaining these matters.
Stay Safe.
Cheers,
Dave