MOT Question

[darrsi]

Was just browsing a handy little government website that tells you the dates of a vehicles tax and MOT, and put my bike number plate in the search box.
It also chucked up a few years info of my previous MOT's.

But i noticed that it said my bike failed its MOT in 2014, then on the same date and mileage it then shows a pass.
After checking my own service notes i remember taking the bike in for an MOT that day, but also with a new tyre to be fitted as well while they're at it.
It says i failed on a tyre with with a tread of less than 1mm, which is total bollocks as i'm way too fussy to let a tyre go anywhere that low.
But if i took a new tyre why does it mention a fail anyway?
There was no mention of it on the day, and there is no paperwork to say it failed either?
I know it didn't fail because the last bike i had that did was in the late '80's.

Am i missing something here?
It's not a problem, i'm just a bit bewildered by it, especially as it's not even true that i had a dodgy tyre, which is irrelevant anyway as i handed them a new one with my bike?

Any thoughts?

[JoeRock]

Some dozy bugger probably ran an MOT on it before putting the tyre on!

[Grayo]

I would take that issue up with whoever did your mot as that is bollox.
I did exactly the same thing earlier this year. Booked the bike in for new front tyre and mot.
New front tyre fitted and sailed through mot.

[darrsi]

Don't think they can change anything once the details are put through anyway.
They gave me an advisory once on an exhaust they thought was too loud as they never spotted the stamped markings on it, and it was actually very legal.
I asked him to take off the advisory but he said he couldn't as it had gone through, which also pissed me off as that would ping up on a police licence plate check.
Strangely enough the bike passed today with an unbaffled Quill race can on it, as it has several times before, although it's not as bad on the ears compared to the legal one.

[fazerscotty]

Some places will fail a bike/car first, before fitting the tyres you already told them to change - I don't know if its a manifestation of a jobsworth or somebody just justifying their miserable existence, I have had exactly the same on a FJR. Booked in for an MOT and a pair of tyres. Failed the MOT, then they fitted the tyres and passed it! Must of been a slow day.

[darrsi]

Just seems weird that the info was made available for everyone else to see but i was not made aware of it, and all i have is the clean MOT pass sheet.
What has slightly pissed me off is the fact that the tyre wouldn't have been a fail, there's just no way i'd let a tyre go nearly bald, even more so the front one, so it would appear to me that a few fails put through balances their books a bit.
I'll check the site again after September 3rd and see if it miraculously failed on anything else this morning.

[slappy]

All garages seem to do that now, my wifes fiesta went in for mot other month and told the guy that offside rear brake bulb wanted replacing. On that site Darrsi refers to it shows the car failing mot due to non working brake bulb but mot certicate shows straight pass.
I wonder if they do it just to show that they are actually carrying out the full mot test in case they get audited.

[Fazerider]

Maybe they have to come up with a certain percentage of failures simply to avoid some government inspector coming round and checking up on them.

[darrsi]

It is a handy site though:


www.ukvehicle.com/car-check/

[limax2]

I think they like to show a reasonable percentage of fails so it doesn't look like they are being to lenient and triggering an early inspection from VOSA or whoever is the authority in charge. Of course I could just be talking garbage.
Edit. Just realised I've repeated what Fazerider posted. I blame it on watching another gold for the G.B. cycling team while posting on here.

[robby boy]

It is a handy site though:


www.ukvehicle.com/car-check/

I always use mot history checker on the .gov site, its excellent. The garages doing MOTS don't have a percentage of fails or passes to work to so why this one did this is a mystery, they maybe have a lot of passes and just bung in a fail now and again to put the man from the DVSA off their arses.

[Exupnut]

it was probably written up that way for financial reasons....whatever business comes ur way from contracts or repeat business due to the law will always be "tweaked" by a good Co to improve margins.

[darrsi]

It is a handy site though:


www.ukvehicle.com/car-check/

I always use mot history checker on the .gov site, its excellent. The garages doing MOTS don't have a percentage of fails or passes to work to so why this one did this is a mystery, they maybe have a lot of passes and just bung in a fail now and again to put the man from the DVSA off their arses.

Just had a look at that site, i used to use that one but the reason i like the one i use now is because the number plate details are all you need to enter.


But, on looking i found this which i hadn't noticed either!
Again, no mention of this to me in person, or on any paperwork at all, i just got a straight pass.
It's only trivial stuff, but in my opinion a little bit underhand and a tad cheeky.

[Bretty]

It seems quite common for them to fail your bike, carry out any works, then pass it.

To be fair, that's quite logical, as during the MOT they might find some other serious or expensive works, which might influence your decision about having other works done. i.e. if the MOT flags up over £300 of bits that need doing and you can't afford it, you're not going to bother fitting new brake pads or a tyre and may just consider selling the bike as an MOT failure.

It appears the previous owner of my bike, took it into the garage for an MOT with none of the lights working?!

Test date: 18 August 2011
 Test Result: Fail
 MOT test number: XXXX XXXX XXXX
 Reason(s) for failure:

All position lamps do not illuminate immediately when switched on (1.1.3a)
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on dipped beam (1.2.2a(i))
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on main beam (1.2.2a(ii))
Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies (1.3.1a)
Direction indicators not working (1.5.1c)
Horn not working (1.7.3a)

 Advisory notice item(s):

Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.3(ii))

[darrsi]

It seems quite common for them to fail your bike, carry out any works, then pass it.

To be fair, that's quite logical, as during the MOT they might find some other serious or expensive works, which might influence your decision about having other works done. i.e. if the MOT flags up over £300 of bits that need doing and you can't afford it, you're not going to bother fitting new brake pads or a tyre and may just consider selling the bike as an MOT failure.

It appears the previous owner of my bike, took it into the garage for an MOT with none of the lights working?!

Test date: 18 August 2011
 Test Result: Fail
 MOT test number: XXXX XXXX XXXX
 Reason(s) for failure:

All position lamps do not illuminate immediately when switched on (1.1.3a)
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on dipped beam (1.2.2a(i))
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on main beam (1.2.2a(ii))
Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies (1.3.1a)
Direction indicators not working (1.5.1c)
Horn not working (1.7.3a)

 Advisory notice item(s):

Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.3(ii))

But my first "fail" wouldn't have been a fail at all.
I always flag up when my MOT is due a couple of weeks before so i would've ordered a new tyre to take in with the bike as it's used for commuting, plus i'm on call every other week for work, so i can't have the bike off the road.
I handed him the tyre and my key first, then went for something to eat for half an hour. (a family member dropped off the tyre for me).
And i guarantee 100% that the tyre on the bike was roadworthy at that time, i have no doubts whatsoever about this, so that bike should not have been failed at any time.


And now that 2012 fail i've just found is mentioning a dodgy brake? First i've ever heard of it? It wasn't mentioned to me then, and they certainly don't work for free and nothing was fixed!
I go to the cafe a few doors down for half hour, i come back, and he gives me my passed MOT certificate, then i'm on my way, and i've been going there for years with different bikes.
It's highly unlikely they'll ever find some expensive MOT failure with any bike of mine, because i'm such a fussy sod i would've noticed the problem first and either dealt with it myself, or taken it to the bike shop for them to fix anyway.


I do get a pass out of them every year, which if they went strictly by the book then technically they could fail it on my exhaust for instance, so i'm not gonna say anything to them, as long as i get the good certificate then i'll let them do whatever they need to do, then everybody's happy.   


Anyone who knowingly takes a bike in to an MOT test without the basics being up to scratch deserves to fail in my opinion, at least make a little bit of effort.
My bike even got a clean and polish yesterday so the mechanic didn't get his hands dirty.

[celticdog]

It's all very subjective this isn't it? 'Tester's Discretion' that's a wonderful phrase. Parts can be removed,disconnected or bypassed temporarily to allow a pass,e.g. airbag warning lights. It's very common in the car trade not so sure about bikes but hey ho it's still all at the tester's discretion.

Tip- use an MoT station that ONLY does MoTs. They have no vested interest in passing or failing as they do no repair work.I take the bike there & see what happens, I've not failed yet. The guy I go to will happily lend you a screwdriver should you wish to tweak your headlight position or quickly replace a bulb on the premises.

[midden]

Does it really  matter     honestly ......

[darrsi]

Does it really  matter     honestly ......

Would you like it if your bike has a record of fails that didn't actually happen, that are on a computer network for everyone to see, and you knew nothing about it?
No it doesn't matter technically, but as a matter of principle then yeah it's touched a nerve to be honest.

[pilninggas]

Does it really  matter     honestly ......

Would you like it if your bike has a record of fails that didn't actually happen, that are on a computer network for everyone to see, and you knew nothing about it?
No it doesn't matter technically, but as a matter of principle then yeah it's touched a nerve to be honest.

Last year mine was failed and then passed (allegedly the near-side indicator inoperative), this was BS, as I checked them as I arrived there - before I went in, the usual pre-mot paranoia. As previous poster have said, it reeks of the test centres wanting to be seen not pass every single test they do. Really annoying as my bike is cherished (certainly in relation to the construction and use act, road-worthiness). Needless to say it didn't get taken back there this year.

[Streetbudgie]

I'm not sure about that site, it says 2 of my vehicles were registered in odd places when I bought them both new.

I tend to use this site to check basic details: https://ownvehicle.askmid.com/

[robby boy]

Dunno why the tester would not tell you about the brake failure, but that fail would be generated from the computer when the brake results were added at the start of the test paperwork. Apart from adding different results the tester has no input on that one.

[darrsi]

I'm not sure about that site, it says 2 of my vehicles were registered in odd places when I bought them both new.

I tend to use this site to check basic details: https://ownvehicle.askmid.com/

Just tried that, all it says is my bike is insured, no other details.