It’s been a wild 24 hours for those of us who own classic cars. With one swoop of a pen, the Department for Transport has exempted most classic cars more than 40 years old from the annual roadworthiness test, effective 20 May 2018. To say the response has been a mixed bag would be an understatement, with almost as many of you coming out in support of the change as condemning it as a reckless move that may put lives in danger.
A similar narrative was reflected in the official consultation document, which polled some 2141 individuals, 24 businesses, six trade bodies, nine other public bodies, and as many as 37 motorists’ clubs. It found that only 899 respondents were in favour of exempting vehicles over 40 years old from the MoT, with a whopping 1130 respondents in opposition. Should alarm bells be ringing at the DfT when the majority of those polled – many of whom have to jump the MoT hurdle each year – would rather the test remain in place?
The benefits of the move seem to be focussed around saving owners of pre-’78 classics money, both from the test itself and the cost of getting the car to the test centre. But what are the long-term effects of the legislation?
It seems reasonable to assume that garages – in particular those that cater for classic cars – will suffer financially. Not only will they miss out on the annual test fees, but also a raft of work that would have resulted from cars that failed their MoTs.
