When revising the tests in 2018, a large percentage of vehicles did not get through with them. While the UK has a little over 30 million cars that are registered for the MOT test, about 10 million of them failed and had to fix the areas that they did not perform well in and go through it again. There are many reasons for the tests getting tougher with the most prominent ones being that some of the checks handled were never done on vehicles before.
According to a survey in the UK, most people do not get their vehicles tested regularly, which is one of the main reason why the MOT test is so important. People have to make sure that their cars are roadworthy, safe, and have reduced emissions. Checking their emissions was a significant part of the test, and there were a lot of checks that revolved around that, with the upgraded MOT test. Other safety features of the vehicle were also thoroughly checked, like ABS for the brakes, the airbags, and various lights, including the daytime running lights, that were always ignored, in the past.
During the Coronavirus pandemic, most companies began remote working. While some industries cannot handle working remotely, like construction or hospitality, others started getting their employees to turn in their work remotely. Most people did not want to leave their houses in such situations since there were high chances of them getting sick. Around the same time, the Government opened up a system to book MOT online. People could not register for their tests without having to visit the store since there were lines at the store.
Furthermore, they could also check MOT online since all the information about past MOT tests and vehicle histories were online, which allowed mechanics to know the work that was handled on cars and accordingly handle the rest. They could also see the sections where a vehicle did not do well in the previous year and accordingly, improve for the following test. Some garages made arrangements to send a representative to the houses of vehicle owners. They collected the vehicles, got them tested and dropped the cars back. They also made sure that they completed all the checks and measures before sending the car back, so people were safe.
The Government was allowing people to hold off on taking their vehicles to the garages if they had a good reason. Unfortunately, they could not drive them without an MOT test on the road for the same reasons. They had to complete the test, before being driven publicly. Additionally, they delayed the MOT tests for all people from the 30th of March to the 31st of July by six months.
There was no paperwork to get this done, just an automatic push. Furthermore, vehicles were allowed to get tested during the pandemic as well, if they choose to since garages were marked as essential services and had to be kept open throughout the process.
