Motorcycle riders throughout the UK wasted greater than £35,000 on MOT retests between April 2023 and April 2024 due to an issue they might have noticed with a easy at-home examine. New analysis from Go.Examine motorcycle insurance coverage has discovered that 41% of failed motorcycle MOTs final 12 months had been as a consequence of defective lamps and reflectors, making it the primary explanation for failures. Regardless of being one of many best issues to examine, these points left riders footing the invoice for fully avoidable retests.
The findings, which analysed DVSA testing figures alongside its personal survey information to calculate the monetary affect of frequent MOT failures. Over the course of the 12 months, an estimated 15,061 motorcycle MOT failures may have been prevented with fundamental checks. Greater than 11,000 of these had been right down to issues with lamps and reflectors alone. Based mostly on the share of riders who miss the free retest window — 10.5%, in line with a YouGov survey from December 2024 — this equates to over £35,600 in wasted prices for easy lighting points, with complete avoidable retest spend hitting £47,000 for the 12 months.
Brake defects had been the second most typical explanation for failure, contributing to 18% of failed exams. Structural faults and attachment points adopted at 11%, with suspension issues accounting for 10%. Whereas these could also be tougher to detect with out specialist instruments, a number of different failure classes that riders can simply examine at residence had been nonetheless widespread. Tyre issues made up 9% of failures, whereas car identification points had been behind one other 4%.
Go.Examine additionally discovered that over the previous 5 years, avoidable motorcycle MOT failures have value riders upwards of £210,000. With a typical MOT for a motorcycle costing as much as £29.65, those that fail as a consequence of small oversights can discover themselves paying twice — as soon as for the unique take a look at, and once more for the retest in the event that they miss the grace interval.
Tom Banks, motoring skilled at Go.Examine, urged motorcyclists to take pre-test checks significantly. “Our analysis exhibits that 1000’s of kilos is being wasted yearly on avoidable MOT failures, however making ready for the take a look at correctly will help you keep away from incurring further prices. There are some easy checks that you could carry out at residence earlier than you guide your bike in for its MOT, they usually may prevent money and time by stopping a failure. For instance, be certain that your lights are working correctly and change any bulbs it’s essential to, then examine the tyres’ tread depth to see in the event that they meet the minimal necessities.”
He added: “In case your motorcycle does fail its MOT, don’t fear, you’ve nonetheless obtained a 10-day window to get it in for a free retest. If you will get it mounted earlier than this, you shouldn’t have to pay for an additional take a look at. Bear in mind, your bike received’t be road-legal if it fails its MOT as a consequence of a harmful fault, that means your insurance coverage will possible develop into invalid as nicely. If it fails, you’ll have to get the problems rectified earlier than you may journey it once more.”
All figures within the report relate to class one and two automobiles (bikes) and are primarily based on official DVSA information and survey insights. Additional particulars and recommendation for riders might be discovered at Go.Examine.
