THREE SCOTTISH POSTCODES IN BOTTOM TEN FOR MOT PASS RATES

Astudy of MOT pass rates has shown that three Scottish areas appear in the list of 10 postcodes where cars are least likely to pass first time - while all 10 of the best performing areas in the UK are towns in the South East of England. The figures were unearthed as part of a study into DVSA figures by consumer motoring site Honestjohn.co.uk. The data also showed that 385,000 cars which would otherwise fail their MOT would remain on the roads for an extra year should the Government proceed with plans to extend the period before a car’s first MOT from three to four years.

The data revealed that the Essex town of Romford has the best MOT pass rate in the UK. By contrast, the two areas with the highest fail rate (Kirkcaldy and Dundee) were in Scotland, while failure rates were also high in the South-west of England, with six towns and cities in the region in the bottom 10. Aberdeen was the third Scottish city to make the bottom ten, in eighth place with a 58 per cent pass rate

Honestjohn.co.uk analysed millions of MOT records from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and published the MOT Files for the first time in three years, following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request and a protracted fight with the DVSA to make the data public.

The research also showed that the most common reasons for failure related to defects with vehicle lighting, steering, suspension and tyres.

Daniel Powell, Managing Editor of Honestjohn. co.uk said: “While the research may initially suggest that if you want to pass your MOT first time, you should jump in your car and drive it to Romford, there are other factors at play here.

“Drivers in and around London, for example, generally cover a much lower mileage leaving less likelihood of wear and tear, while household incomes are often higher, meaning many people own newer cars.

“In less wealthy areas, some aspects of car maintenance can often be overlooked, whilst in more remote parts of the country the mileage covered between MOT tests is often much greater.”