False MOT's?

Question

What should i do if i beleive i have just bought a car from a private seller with a false MOT. Basically just bought a veh which has 6 months mot but when we got it home the back end is falling off. You can tell it couldnt have happened in 6 months... Is there some sort of governing body i can report it to or is it a case of tough cheese??

Answer 1

first thing would be to check if the mot is for real, like any thing
in life it is not to hard to get hold of fake anything, including
mot, check the mot, there will be a number that you can call
on it to verify if it is legal mot, and if the, problem is as big
as you say, they will pass you on to the appropriate department
who will look into it for you and if need be come to see the car
if they suspect, a fraudulent mot pass, if it is just a fake mot
copy they will tell you straight away........hope this helps.
and good luck..........

Answer 2

The thing about an MOT is that it is only really valid on the day it is issued. Eg if it passes the test and then the next day one of the bulbs blow or your wipers stop working then it would fail if it was tested again so how do you really know that it's a dodgy MOT?
I had a car once that passed it's test at the beginning of the month and then 4 weeks later the exhaust needed replacing but it was not mentioned on the advisory notes. It all depends on how the car is driven and how it is treated.
If you are still suspicious I would contact VOSA if I were you.

Answer 3

Do like David_h says to check your MoT certificate. If it's a dud, report it to VOSA & the police.

However, whether it's genuine or not, remember what they say with monotonous regularity, an MoT is NO guarantee of roadworthiness. It just says the vehicle met the standards at the moment of test.

With a private sale, I'm afraid there's little you can do. He'll just say he told you about the problem. Let the buyer beware is the rule here.

Answer 4

unfortunately on an MOT the time limit for corrosion defects is 3 months. You can still report it to the ministry using the details on the back of the MOT certificate and you can also phone to verify its authenticity. If you find it is dodgy, you have to report it to the police and you cant use the car until you get a new MOT for it as your insurance is invalid

Answer 5

Read the test certificate. It quite plainly states that it attests to the condition of the vehicle at the time of the test. In 6 months time, LOADS can go wrong. Merely having a current test is meaningless. An independent inspection is always the best way to proceed. What's more, if the defect isn't a tested item, it could have existed at the time of the test yet the test would still be legal and valid.

Answer 6

Sorry but 6 months is a long time in car terms, especially through winter. If the MOT is a fake, then report it. If it is genuine, then there is no case to answer.

Caviat Emptor.

Answer 7

on the back of the mot is info for checking out an mot / motinfo.gov.uk to see if its genuine , 6 months MAY be to late , unless its a death trap, look for his phone number in ads , more than 4 cars sold in a year ,then hes a trader ! ring you local trading standards dept , they will help

Answer 8

the address of the mot testing station is on the mot its self
did you know that 24 hours after the vehicle is mot,d that its not a guaruntee that the car is road worthy
you could try writing or e mailing the ministry of transport with photographs good luck

Answer 9

Trading standards may help...there is an offence of selling an unroadworthy vehicle, but not sure if that is for private or trade sellers...details of MOT are on a central register now I think....get photos, videos of it to back up your case....good luck

Answer 10

Is it a fault that would be covered by an MOT test?

Remember the MOT is not saying the car is perfect, only that certain bits of it are safe.



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