Despite spending £275 on four new tyres, front brake pads and a wiper blade, my car still failed its MOT today (14% handbrake efficiency). The garage can't fit me in for the repair and partial retest while next Tuesday (1/11/16). The MOT tester told me that the fail notice supercedes my existing certificate, which still has a week to run (to 2/11/16) and I could get fined if stopped by the police or caught on ANPR cameras. Is this correct?
https://www.gov.uk/getting-an-mot/after-the-test Clear as mud. Well done DVLA Driving a vehicle that’s failed You can take your vehicle away if your MOT certificate is still valid. In both cases, your vehicle still needs to meet the minimum standards of roadworthiness at all times or you can be fined.
You are legally allowed to drive after failing if your original mot has time left however obviously you would be driving a vehicle that isn't fit and can't plead ignorance so depending on what it is you could be in trouble if stopped. A dodgy handbrake doesn't make your car unsafe while driving though so you should be fine
Having read this from VOSA, I think I'm going to get the repair done by another garage tomorrow and take it for the retest as planned next Tuesday. “Should you present your vehicle early and the vehicle fails the test, your original certificate still remains valid until its expiry date. "But this does not mean that you are entitled to continue to use a defective vehicle. “However, once the defects are repaired you can continue to use the vehicle until either it is retested or the original test certificate expires. "Remember a current test certificate does not allow continued use of a defective vehicle on a public road.”
I *think* you can legitimately drive a vehicle without a valid MOT (failed/expired) to/from a garage for repairs or a retest. Driving it anywhere else could be an issue...
