DVSA Pledges to Investigate MOT Fraud

The DVSA intends to double down on MOT fraud, its latest business plan report has confirmed.

With over 1,300 confirmed cases of MOT fraud recorded last year, the organisation is well aware of the issue - and says it plans to use ‘intelligence-based targeting’ to track the movements of vehicles. By employing this technology, the DVSA hopes to catch out garages issuing MOT tests to vehicles that haven’t even visited the garage.

“We will increase our capability and capacity to investigate serious fraud and criminal activity by using advanced technology surveillance equipment and associated data processes for MOT surveillance, under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA),” states the report.

This year, it plans to prosecute 10% more MOT fraud cases than last year, targeting the companies that - in its words - ‘choose not to do things right.’

Strong opposition to biennial MOT proposals

In other MOT-related news, a petition against proposals to make the now-annual test a biennial requirement - in response to the current cost of living crisis - has been gathering steam. It emerged a number of weeks ago that the government was considering reducing the frequency of MOT tests to help ease the burden on families and individuals suffering due to high energy and fuel bills. The idea was met with criticism from road safety experts and garage owners, not least Stephen Browne of Meadowfield AutoCentre in Newcastle Upon Tyne, the man behind the petition.

“If this gets through and the frequency is extended to every two years, I would have to sack a member of staff immediately and then I’d need to put all my prices up," Stephen said, speaking to Garage Wire.

“How you can call this a saving to customers, I don’t know. Realistically, an MOT tester can only go six months without doing an MOT before they’re no longer an MOT tester and then they’d need a demonstration test for the DVSA before they can start testing again. There'll be no testing stations left by the time these vehicles will need an MOT again. People will lose their jobs, MOT testing stations will close and then there will be a backlog in two years’ time when everyone needs an MOT again. In these situations, everyone assumes somebody’s going to do something but then nobody does anything. Then we all shake our fists and say this should never have happened. I just want to show our strength and raise these very real risks – if we can all sing from the same hymn sheet, our argument is so much stronger.”

At the time of writing, the change.org petition had attracted just over of 7,000 signatures.

MOT/ATL equipment

Looking for industry-leading MOT/ATL equipment for your garage? Look no further than Hofmann Megaplan. Browse our range today.