Will classic cars soon have a one-off MOT - and can it make owning historic vehicles easier?
Published: 04/08/2024
- Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs proposes a 'one-off safety check'
- Test to make DVLA checks of restomods and restored classics easier for owners
- Response submitted as part of classic car call for evidence that ended in July
Certain classic cars could be required to undergo comprehensive safety checks in the future, if proposed regulations to the DVLA are implemented.
The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs wants a 'one-off safety check' to be introduced for historic vehicles that have undergone major renovation or modifications.
The FBHVC requested these changes in response to a call for evidence from the DVLA.
The call for evidence, which ran for eight weeks between May and July gathered responses from industry, enthusiast and owners on how classic cars can be preserved for generations to come.
The FBHVC – which represents 250,000 member and 'exists to uphold the freedom to use historic vehicles on the road' – doesn't want to change the MOT exemption structure for the vast majority of classic cars.
Any vehicle registered more than 40 years ago no longer needs to undergo the annual roadworthiness check-up as the general consensus is that these motors are owned by enthusiasts who care for - and work on them - privately due to most being cherished assets.
However, the Federation wants a new MOT-esque test applicable only to historic vehicles that have undergone major restructuring or modifications, and for it to be a 'one-off' test.
The new test would, like an MOT, 'assess the vehicle with reference to the technical standards applicable when it was new' but would be a 'more in-depth inspection than the MOT' the FBHVC says.
Further ideas submitted by the Federation in the call for evidence include possible 'dismantling to permit full access to all parts of the vehicle'.
While this might seem like extra hoops to jump through for classic car owners, the organisation (which represents the wishes of owners, individuals and traders to government and legislators) is in fact trying to simplify the issues with current historic vehicle registrations.
At present Individual Vehicle Approval is not compatible with newly restored or retrofitted classic vehicles and is 'entirely inappropriate and not suitable in this context' according to the Federation.
When This is Money reported on the call for evidence, the Historic and Classic Vehicles Alliance (HCVA) flagged up the registration system was falling down at this critical moment.
If, for whatever reason the DVLA decides your car is subject to a new VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) – usually if it's been imported or highly-modified – then it needs to be re-assessed to re-pass vehicle approval.
But since the 1980s, the decision-making process behind DVLA intervention is a complete mystery, with owners being slapped with Q-plates for as small changes as drilling a hole.
HCVA chief executive Guy Lachlan said: 'It's the only industry that operates to rules not published anywhere.'
This is despite the HCVA pointing out 'even radical change doesn't remove vehicle identity'.
The DVLA will then tell you to re-register your car with a new VIN, Individual Vehicle Approval and a Q-plate registration number.
Like the HCVA, the FBHVC wants this process to be tailored to work with restored and highly-modified cars like restomods.
The FBHVC believes this one-off inspection, if brought in with classic vehicles in mind and properly structured for them, will remove the troublesome step of trying to understand and pass the rigmarole-surrounded Individual Vehicle Approval.
The FBHVC said in its response to the call for evidence: 'The existing periodic testing regime [MOT], with an exemption from compulsory testing for the majority of historic vehicles over 40 years old, but with the provision for voluntary tests if desired, is broadly satisfactory although there are issues with its application to historic HGVs.'
Whether this MOT-type test is brought into legislation depends on our new Labour government and if it implements the findings from the call from evidence.
It was introduced by the previous Conservative government under then Secretary for Transport Mark Harper.
Labour Rt Hon Louise Haigh MP, who now holds this cabinet position under Labour, has yet to announce if she intends to take up from where her predecessor left off.
Source: This news story was published in the Daily Mail on 31 July 2024 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/cars/article-13684103/classic-cars-restomods-restorations-subject-MOT-call-evid.html
