The Government is still considering a reduction in the frequency of the MoT test to four years after purchasing a new car, then every two years thereafter.

Secretary of State for Transport, Phillip Hammond, believes the quality of new cars means they do not need to be tested as frequently.

He said: “Car technology has come a long way since the 1960s when the MoT regime was introduced. That’s why we think it’s right to check whether we still have the right balance of MoT testing for modern vehicles.”

The Retail Motor Industry has said it will fight and lobby any intention to change the MoT to a 4-2-2 schedule.

The DfT had previously stated in December 2008 that keeping the MoT test annual was appropriate, but launched another review to see if the schedule needed changing again in December 2010.

 

Stuart James, RMI Director, said: “We understand the consumer is seeing the move as a chance to save money on their MoT bills.

“However the savings of as little as £25 a year will only escalate the repair bills that will come with bi-annual testing.

“More and more evidence is being produced to show that record levels of cars and vans are failing their MoTs.

“Maintenance standards are slipping due to the lack of money car users currently have at their disposal. This will in turn have a knock on affect on the safety of road users. This proposal could not come at a worse time for both garage owners and road users.”

The move comes despite warnings from a study published by the Department of Transport in 2008 highlighting that the safety of road users throughout the UK could be seriously undermined by the proposed change to the MoT testing system.

John Ball, RMI MoT chairman, said: “In 2008 the Department for Transport produced a report on this very subject that stated that such a change to the frequency of MoT testing could result in 400 extra road deaths a year.

“However this weekend the The Transport Research Laboratory working on behalf of the Department for Transport sent out a report stating that a change to 4-2-2 would ‘only’ see an extra 16-30 road deaths a year.

“Why has there been such a change in these numbers? We need to know exactly what we are dealing with for the sake of the public’s safety. We are talking about lives being lost as a result of this move.”