MilesheetAn MOT is not proof your van was roadworthy
The test is one day a year. The obligation is every day, and for work vehicles it reaches the employer too.
A valid MOT certificate proves a vehicle met the minimum standard on the day it was tested. It says nothing about the day you are driving it, which is the day that matters.
What the test is
Cars, vans and most vehicles need their first MOT at three years old, then annually. It checks the items on the test schedule — brakes, lights, tyres, suspension, emissions, structure, visibility — against a defined standard.
It is not a service, it does not check the engine's condition, and it does not predict anything.
The obligation the certificate does not discharge
It is an offence to use a vehicle on a road in a dangerous or unroadworthy condition regardless of when it was tested. A certificate from eleven months ago is not a defence for a tyre that went below the limit last week.
For anyone driving for work this is the important half, because it is a continuing duty rather than an annual event.
Where the employer comes in
If employees drive for work — their own vehicles included — the employer has duties around their safety while working. In practice that usually means being able to show:
- Vehicles used for work are maintained and roadworthy
- Where employees use their own cars, there is a check that they are taxed, insured for business use and MOT'd
- Drivers know they can report a defect without being penalised for the delay it causes
The grey-fleet case — staff using their own cars on company business — is the one most often overlooked, because nobody feels responsible for a vehicle they do not own.
What the MOT does and does not cover
| Checked at MOT | Not checked at MOT |
|---|---|
| Brakes | Engine condition |
| Lights and indicators | Clutch and gearbox |
| Tyres and wheels | Oil and coolant level between services |
| Suspension | Cambelt |
| Steering | Air conditioning |
| Exhaust and emissions | Anything that fails the day after |
| Structure and corrosion | |
| Visibility, wipers, washers |
The right-hand column is why an MOT is not a service and not a guarantee.
The practical routine
Daily or weekly walk-round checks catch nearly everything that matters and take two minutes:
- Tyres — pressure, tread, damage
- Lights — all of them, which needs a second person or a reflective window
- Fluids — oil, coolant, screenwash
- Glass and mirrors — chips spread, and a chip in the swept area can fail an MOT
- Wipers — smearing is a visibility defect, not an annoyance
Keeping the evidence
If something does happen, the useful thing is a record showing the vehicle was being looked after, not a certificate showing it passed a test last spring.
That is the same argument as the mileage log, for the same reason: contemporaneous records of what actually happened beat reconstructions. If you are already recording journeys per vehicle, you have the usage history to go with the maintenance one — which between them describe how hard the vehicle has been worked and when it was last looked at.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Getting an MOT
- GOV.UK — Check the MOT history of a vehicle
- GOV.UK — Get an MOT reminder
- The Highway Code — Annex 6: vehicle maintenance, safety and security
General information, not legal advice. Employer duties around driving for work are detailed: take advice on your own obligations.