The Ministry of Transport has announced a proposal that will see cars that are over 40 years old become exempt from MOT testing as of May 2018. The new legislation comes after reviews by the government revealed that modern tests were becoming too advanced to be suitable for older vehicles.
A proposal to create simpler tests was rejected by the department of transport, that noted most classic car owners keep their vehicles in good condition. In addition, owners of cars over 40 years old will still be able to submit their vehicles for voluntary MOT testing when the new rules at enforced.
Under current laws, all vehicles are required to undergo an annual MoT or Roadworthiness test except for cars made before 1960. The changes planned by the Ministry of Transport would mean that the MoT test exemption would now cover cars made or registered in the 1970s too.
Implementation of the new changes would also bring the age of test exempt vehicles in line with that of exemption from paying road tax.
In making the proposed changes, the government carried out research that found that standard garages may be inadequately testing older cars. This is a result of modern MoT tests becoming less applicable to classic cars, and newer car services being inadequate to maintaining their current standard.
To support its position, the government stated its belief that classic cars were rarely used and usually kept in good condition. The option to submit cars for testing would remain open to cars 40 years and over as owners will still be required to keep their vehicles in a roadworthy condition if they are to be used on public roads.
The element of risk from making cars over 40 years old exempt was judged to be small, so the changes to the MOT test are likely to take effect in 2018. While models from the 1970s may be a bit younger, the government trust that classic car owners will remain responsible for the upkeep of their vehicles.
Reference: Autocar
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