MOT and partial retest question

Lurker1

So, I went to my MOT appointment three days ago and my MOT failed and the garage has said it won’t be able to get the job sorted until next week. I need my car urgently. On the gov website it says: “You only need a partial retest if you leave the vehicle at the test centre for repair and it’s retested within 10 working days. There’s no fee for this.”

Sorry if this is a stupid question, what if I get a mobile mechanic in and do the work for me, would the above point still be valid as the car hasn’t left the test centre? I am feeling wary as well now because the garage listed only one MOT failure but has suggested for me to do a few other work. I thought about it and called back to say nah I’ll leave it but he says ohhh but I can’t guarantee you’ll be driving in safe condition on the road. I’m unsure if he’s trying to rip me off and would like another mechanic’s opinion, but I really don’t fancy forking out more money for a MOT test again.

lesalanos

They may not be happy at you getting a mobile mechanic in to do the work and be fully booked up on testing for days.

Doesn't mean you can't take it away and get it fixed & tested elsewhere 

angrycrow

What did it fail on and what were the other advisories or other work he recommended. 

AdrianC

Lurker1 said:

So, I went to my MOT appointment three days ago and my MOT failed and the garage has said it won’t be able to get the job sorted until next week. I need my car urgently. On the gov website it says: “You only need a partial retest if you leave the vehicle at the test centre for repair and it’s retested within 10 working days. There’s no fee for this.”

Sorry if this is a stupid question, what if I get a mobile mechanic in and do the work for me, would the above point still be valid as the car hasn’t left the test centre?

Yes, but the chances of the garage letting the mobile mechanic work on the car in their yard are slender.

I am feeling wary as well now because the garage listed only one MOT failure but has suggested for me to do a few other work.

The MOT pass standard is the absolute bare minimum standard to be legally on the road. Any properly maintained car should pass a test with no work needed, at any time. So saying "Look, this isn't a fail now, but is going to want looking at in the near-ish future" could well be basic stitch-in-time maintenance, and no more than that. Have you looked online at the test result (https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/) and is this other work on there as an advisory (something the tester noticed that he thinks you should be aware of, but good enough to pass)? Or is it simply advice he's giving you?

I thought about it and called back to say nah I’ll leave it but he says ohhh but I can’t guarantee you’ll be driving in safe condition on the road. I’m unsure if he’s trying to rip me off and would like another mechanic’s opinion

Well, it's not like he needs the work, is it? He's clearly not touting as a make-work scam, since he can't do the work in time...

but I really don’t fancy forking out more money for a MOT test again.

We're talking about, what, £45 or so? £55 absolute maximum...? How much "unnecessary" work would be saved to justify that, iyho? Bearing in mind that's not even going to be an hour's labour by the time VAT's added on.

Car_54

lesalanos said:

They may not be happy at you getting a mobile mechanic in to do the work and be fully booked up on testing for days.

Doesn't mean you can't take it away and get it fixed & tested elsewhere 

That depends on why it failed. The tester is suggesting it would be unsafe to drive, in which case the OP would be committing an offence to do so. He could get it trailered, but that would negate any saving he's hoping to make.

EdGasketTheSecond

Where I go for my mots I can take the car away, fix it, and return within 10 working days for a free retest. Seems to be standard practice at most sensible garages around me, but not at chains or cut price mot places.

lesalanos

Car_54 said:

lesalanos said:

They may not be happy at you getting a mobile mechanic in to do the work and be fully booked up on testing for days.

Doesn't mean you can't take it away and get it fixed & tested elsewhere 

That depends on why it failed. The tester is suggesting it would be unsafe to drive, in which case the OP would be committing an offence to do so. He could get it trailered, but that would negate any saving he's hoping to make.

Hence take it away not drive it away

They could even push it 

Car_54

lesalanos said:

Car_54 said:

lesalanos said:

They may not be happy at you getting a mobile mechanic in to do the work and be fully booked up on testing for days.

Doesn't mean you can't take it away and get it fixed & tested elsewhere 

That depends on why it failed. The tester is suggesting it would be unsafe to drive, in which case the OP would be committing an offence to do so. He could get it trailered, but that would negate any saving he's hoping to make.

They could even push it 

That would still require a valid MOT.

Car_54

Car_54 said:

lesalanos said:

Car_54 said:

lesalanos said:

They may not be happy at you getting a mobile mechanic in to do the work and be fully booked up on testing for days.

Doesn't mean you can't take it away and get it fixed & tested elsewhere 

That depends on why it failed. The tester is suggesting it would be unsafe to drive, in which case the OP would be committing an offence to do so. He could get it trailered, but that would negate any saving he's hoping to make.

They could even push it 

That would still require a valid MOT.

And for the car to be roadworthy.