G. Vehicle presenters

How to appeal against a decision to refuse to pass a test, and how to complain against the decision to pass a test.

1. Statutory appeal against the refusal to pass a test

An owner or presenter of a vehicle has the right to appeal against a decision to refuse to pass a test following an MOT examination.

Any complainant must be given a notice of appeal form (VT17) and told to post or email the completed form to the DVSA customer service centre to arrive as soon as possible but no later than 14 working days after the date of the test.

The complainant must also be told they may have to pay the full amount of the test fee applicable to the class of vehicle and not to undertake any repairs or adjustments to the vehicle until it has been examined by a DVSA examiner. DVSA will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and may arrange for the vehicle to be re-examined.

Find out more about how to appeal an MOT test result.

Details can also be found on the MOT test and appeals poster (VT9A) which must be displayed on the MOT notice board in every vehicle testing station (VTS).

Contact DVSA

DVSA Customer Service Centre
[email protected]
Telephone: 0300 123 9000
Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

DVSA
The Ellipse
Padley Road
Swansea
SA1 8AN

2. Complaint against the decision to pass a test

An owner or presenter of a vehicle has the right to complain against the decision to pass a test following an MOT examination.

Any complainant must be given a notice of appeal form (VT17) and told to post or email the completed form to the DVSA Customer Service Centre. DVSA will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and may arrange for the vehicle to be re-examined if the alleged defects appear to call into question the test result providing there is a reasonable chance of assessing what the vehicle’s condition had been at the time of test.

It is not possible to make a blanket ruling on how long after the test such an assessment can be made.

It is, however, unlikely that mechanical defects can be assessed for complaints made more than 28 days after test or that corrosion defects can be assessed for complaints made more than 3 months after test.

Any repairs made to the vehicle also make such an assessment less likely to be relevant.

Find out more about how to appeal an MOT test result.

Details can also be found on the MOT test and appeals poster (VT9A) which must be displayed on the MOT notice board in every VTS.