Nearly half of all UK vans fail their first MoT ~ station of gear

Car mechanic, servicing, fix, exhaust, spanner

The majority of van MoT failures are down to poor maintenance and rough treatment on the part of businesses and drivers

2016-03-29 20:00

Nearly half of all vans in Britain fail their first MoT test, the majority as a result of negligent ownership by van drivers and companies, a new study by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles reveals.

The 49 per cent failure rate for vans is much higher than the nine per cent fail rate Auto Express previously found for all new vehicles, and has only improved by one per cent in the last three years.

This number is also likely to increase in the future, as new laws coming in 2017 allow new vehicle owners to wait until four years before needing an MoT, instead of the current three-year maximum.

• 15% of MoT verdicts are wrong

However, there is a silver lining, VW Commercial Vehicles analysed official Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency MoT failure rates, and found that 45 per cent of MoT faults could have been avoided through simple check-ups.

Light bulb faults accounted for 32 per cent of all vans failing nthe MoT test, while worn tyres and faulty mirrors caused another five and eight per cent of vans to fail respectively. All of these could have been avoided by owners being more attentive to their vehicles.

Another 40 per cent of MoT failures were down to brake and suspension faults – something regular servicing and maintanance would have been able to address.

• Website lets you check car mileage and MoT history

Trevor Hodgson-Phillips, head of service and parts at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, said: “News that nearly half of all LCVs on the road are still failing their MOT tests first time round is worrying, especially as these figures have shown no change in the past three years.

“The latest results show us that UK van owners are still risking increased running bills, extended vehicle downtime periods and, potentially, a decrease in the overall resale value of their vehicle by not looking after their van properly.”

He added: “The road-worthiness of the vehicle is also something that business owners should be thinking about. Should an accident occur and the vehicle deemed to be below standard, company owners could be left facing hefty fines or even prison terms.”

Has your van ever failed an MoT before? Tell us why in the comments below...

Martin Saarinen

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