A review is currently being conducted by the government, which could bring a bit of good news to classic car owners, as they are looking at the MOT system regarding vehicles which pre-date 1960 with a view to possibly scrapping MOTs on these vehicles, not only cutting costs for the government but also for the vehicle owners.
Under current EU rules, allowances are made whereby governments are able to set the standards for vehicles they deem to be of historical interest. These rules make it possible for the new proposals to be considered.
Consultations have been initiated by Mike Penning, Transport Minister, regarding the exemption of classic cars from having MOT services. Mr Penning points out that classic car owners keep their cars well maintained as a matter of course, which renders it unnecessary to have to enforce regular servicing.
Statistics have recently revealed that 0.03% of car accidents which result in injuries are recorded involving classic vehicles, proving that vintage cars have a reduced likelihood of being involved in traffic accidents. There are an estimated 35.2 million cars on the roads of Britain and classic cars make up an incredibly small proportion of this, approximately 0.06%.
Consultations are set to run through to January 2012 to decide whether classic vehicles should be excluded from present MOT regulations, with three separate areas being considered for review – pre-1960, pre-1945 and pre-1920.
Should the consultation lead to acceptance of the proposals, vehicle owners and the government could reap the advantages of the savings gained by scrapping MOT’s.