Free MOT check: the full MOT history of any UK vehicle
Every MOT test since 2005, with the result, advisories, defects and mileage recorded at each one, plus the current expiry date. Nothing held back for a paid version.
What the report shows
Date, result, mileage and validity of each MOT, back to the first one recorded in 2005.
Each item the tester recorded, labelled by DVSA's own severity: dangerous, major, minor or advisory.
Every reading plotted, with any reading lower than the one before flagged as a possible anomaly.
Pass rate for the same model and year, and the defects most likely to fail it next, from 97.8m recorded tests.
How to read an MOT history
Advisories are items that passed but are wearing. They are the most useful part of a history, because a tyre "close to the legal limit" in one test very often becomes a failure at the next. The report pulls the latest advisories into their own panel and attaches the measured risk for each category: nationally, 36.1% of cars given a lights advisory failed on it a year later, against 1.3% for fuel and oil leaks. The guide to advisories has the full table.
Major and dangerous defects fail the test outright. A car with a dangerous defect must not be driven until it is fixed, even to the garage.
Mileage is recorded by the tester at every MOT. A reading that goes backwards is either a typo or a sign the odometer has been tampered with, and either way it is worth asking the seller about before buying. Against the model's own figures you can also see whether a car has done far more or far less than is typical.
When the certificate is close to running out, the report links straight to the nearest test centres and offers a free email reminder. The tax estimate at the bottom comes from the current VED tables.
Questions people ask
Is this the same as the GOV.UK MOT checker?
It uses the same DVSA record. This report adds a mileage chart, the severity of each defect, the measured risk that each advisory becomes a failure, and a comparison with other cars of the same model and year, which the official service does not show.
Why does a car have no MOT history?
Cars are exempt until their third birthday, so a new car shows nothing. Vehicles registered in Northern Ireland use a separate system and do not appear. A very old vehicle that has not been tested since 2005 has no record either.
Can I check a car I am thinking of buying?
Yes. You only need the registration number from the advert or a photograph. Check it before you view the car and ask the seller about anything the history raises, especially repeated advisories and mileage that goes backwards.
How soon does a new test show up?
Test results reach DVSA within a day of the test, and the record shown here is DVSA's own, so a result from yesterday is normally here today.
Do you store the registrations people look up?
A copy of the record is kept for a few hours so a repeat check is quick, then discarded. Registrations are never linked to who searched for them.