Webley1991

Well-Known Member
As my Series is now over 40 years old, it is eligible for MOT exemption.

I think it may still be worth spending £45 each year to have the vehicle certified as safe.

Has anyone had any issues with their insurance companies with this?

I will contact them and ask about it, I would just be interested to know if anyone has had any problems.

Thanks for any replies.
 
Why do you think there’ll be issues with insurance???? This is a legal thing led by the Government.

btw an MoT is not a certificate to say it is safe.
 
I was wondering if the insurance company would have to be notified if you had changed it to MOT exempt.

I was thinking it was another way they could use to avoid paying out.
 
My insurers have added a question so there is an option to tick "exempt" where the date goes. They have also sent ut an e-mail explaining that they don't see it as an issue. The agreed value requires a declaration of condition anyway. I do my own serviceing but I can see that's not the same as a 2 person check, one pushing and pulling and one observing, I'm thinking of paying for an annual inspection for my benefit rather than the insurers.
 
The problem arises where an the owner of an exempt vehicle has it mot'd for his/her own piece of mind but it then fails and said owner continues using it. I wonder then, if an accident occurred that was nothing to do with the failure issues, how would an insurer react.

Col
 
The problem arises where an the owner of an exempt vehicle has it mot'd for his/her own piece of mind but it then fails and said owner continues using it. I wonder then, if an accident occurred that was nothing to do with the failure issues, how would an insurer react.

Col
Indeed, don't have an mot, have an independent assessment by an LR knowledgeable garage.
 
That's why I have not gone for a "voluntary" MOT, I think the legal status is too tricky. I plan to do my own check for the easy to assess things (pretty much everything accessible from above), then go to an independent and pay for a "condition report". If this has faults i will recitfy them and file the evidence along with the report. My gut feeling is that this will all go pearshaped when some idiot in a fast expsensive car that turns out to be a cut and shut causes a serious accident. There was exactty such an accident in the early 70's near here, a couple were killed when a newly bought "immacualte" Healy 3000 broke in two going very fast. It turned out to be a cut and shut and lead to changes in the MOT to include chassis and body intergrity and it may have been part of the case to prevent write offs going back on the road. Sadly it takes a bad accident to bring some sense.
 
I remember my dads Morris 1000 van falling in half on the way back from the MOT centre.

It had just passed.
 
iirc policies say - or the ones I read did - the car has to be "roadworthy" they don't mention mot. haven't read one for a few years though, usually nod off after the first paragraph
 
I remember my dads Morris 1000 van falling in half on the way back from the MOT centre.

It had just passed.

Fortunately that sort of thing doesn’t happen these days ....


CE63C9A8-4EB7-4700-97C0-68D118A1041A.jpeg
54208A23-0B7B-4EFA-A8B3-A7CF70142389.jpeg
DF90B41E-3B98-41D9-A217-D44232AB2425.jpeg



.... er , I think !
 
We had some Navaras in the Coastguard, One I saw had only passed it's MOT the week before when it had a puncture. On removal of the wheel it could be seen the chassis behind was totaly rotten and had to go for major repairs. Vehicle was just seven years old.
 
We had some Navaras in the Coastguard, One I saw had only passed it's MOT the week before when it had a puncture. On removal of the wheel it could be seen the chassis behind was totaly rotten and had to go for major repairs. Vehicle was just seven years old.
My grandmothers had it's rear left wheel come off on the motorway on the way to newbury spares day whilst towing a trailer. Apparently the break had seized, the heat loosened the bolts and they came loose. An old navarra that's regularly kept well maintained.
 
I have another question related to this that I cannot find a clear answer for.

When the vehicle is declared as MOT exempt using the government form, does it have to have a valid MOT at the time the exemption is declared?

What is to stop someone doing this for a rotten series that has stood in a field for 20 years, who then decides to get it started and drive straight onto the road?
 
I have another question related to this that I cannot find a clear answer for.

When the vehicle is declared as MOT exempt using the government form, does it have to have a valid MOT at the time the exemption is declared?

What is to stop someone doing this for a rotten series that has stood in a field for 20 years, who then decides to get it started and drive straight onto the road?
Because it has to still be road worthy, fines apply for any vehicle that is stopped with defects.
https://www.gov.uk/historic-vehicles
 
That's why I am surprised they haven't imposed a condition that it has to have a current MOT at the time it is declared as exempt.
 
There are some weasle words about "keeping the policy under review" in the DVLA Q&A (can't find the link now) and I'll bet this is one area. The problem is its wide open to abuse - not some much with a Series as its harder to hide defects and not with the high end Mercs, Ferraris but the mid ground - Capris, MGBs,or Porshes with crash damage (most?) where you could take a basket case and with a bit of filler dress it up for a tidy profit. I think the separate chassis vehicles like a Series are less suseptible, its the unibodies with stressed sills and floors where the risk and big money is for concealing poor repairs. Over the years I've known people buy a Datsun that was blue in the front footwells and red in the back, an MGB with a floor made of laminated card and bitumin and something where the welded structural repairs were held on with silicone mastic shaped to look like welds. All three got impounded at MOTs, but here's the rub, they were all bought with MOTs, then failed after 12 months of driving. My series had 12 months MOT with 3 radials and one crossply (noticed later that owner and MOT mech shared a surname - who am I to say..) and a Triumph Herald from a garage "we've just MOTed it sir.." that broke its chassis 6 months later (but it was cheap...) its always gone on but now its just become easier if the buyer is naive. There is a silver lining to this, I had to get my series with an MOT so I could drive it home and park it on the road while I fixed it even though it was obvious it needed serious repairs (again it was cheap..). Now it looks like you could park a tax and MOT exempt basket job in the road so long as it had reflectors, no sharp edges and 3rd party cover (without cover for driving, if you can still get this).
 

Similar threads