By Charlotte Beugge ...

Government takes a U-turn on two-year MOTs

By Charlotte Beugge

The government has done a handbrake turn and pulled plans to change the frequency of MOT tests after furious opposition.

Ministers had been planning to delay the first MOT on a vehicle from three years to four with subsequent tests taking place every two years. The idea was to cut red tape and also reflected the increasing reliability of cars - as well as cutting costs for already hard-hit drivers.

But transport secretary Justine Greening has thrown the plans out after studying research from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA).

According to the Daily Telegraph, this showed that a quarter of MOT tests carried out in 2011 missed routine defects and also wrongly passed thousands of cars as being roadworthy when they were not.

In addition, 30 motoring groups including the AA, RAC and road safety campaigners came together to form an opposition group - ProMOTe - which said the delayed tests would have "been dangerous, expensive and unwarranted".

The government said instead it may mystery-shop garages and consider setting up a website where motorists can review garages.

"Our garages are crucial to ensuring that Britain's roads continue to be among the safest in the world. Most are doing good work but the latest data shows that there is room for improvement," Ms Greening said.

One worry drivers may have is that garages could find faults that need expensive repairs that the garages will then charge for. If you are worried about this happening, you can always use a council-owned MOT testing centre.

These are open to the public and as they don't offer repairs, if you have a car in good condition they could be a good idea.