SORN and MoT

[Martin Cox]

What would be considered a reasonable distance to drive an insured but MoT expired car on SORN to a pre-booked MoT?

Martin

[Tannaton]

Strangely the law does not define the distance that you can drive to a pre-booked MOT, not does it say that it should be the nearest. Case law would say you have to take a reasonably direct route and stop on the way only for essential stops - i.e. to get petrol.

That said... you will need a good story and it should be reasonable - I used to drive 16 miles to a garage in a village which I knew was sensitive to and experienced in classic cars (and also very fair) (actually that was from Beverley to Coniston Bills Garage in Coniston since I notice you are from Hull) but clearly you wont get away with driving from Blackpool to Glasgow in a car you bought that day...

So to answer your question directly - I would say it's based on circumstances and your story.

[Simmy]

just find the nearest mot garage less of a risk returning if it fails

[Martin Cox]

I'll add a little background.

My father died about 2 years ago and his V60 has been sitting in the garage ever since and it's currently on SORN. My mother couldn't bring herself to do anything about it but sadly she no longer has the mental wherewithall to do anything and it's fallen to my lot to move the car on.

The car is in good condition and I would reasonably expect it to pass an MoT as it stands. He lived in Bawtry, South Yorkshire which is about 50 miles away. it would be easier to deal with the car should it fail, if it were in Hull. I have a few places I use in Hull but don't know anybody in the Bawtry area.

To add to the difficulty, when my father died, my brother had the registered keepership transferred to my mother and the car was declared SORN. Unfortunately she's lost the new V5 registration document: she's quite likely to have hidden it or thrown it away. I'm still working out how best to sort that one out.



Martin

[Ulrikas PA]

If it was me in the same situation I would book the MOT time in Hull and write all the details down to have if stopped, and also drive it only an hour and a half before the time, so it's also more than reasonable that you are on the way there.

But that's me.

[DaveNP]

Untangling the estates of two departed relatives I appreciate your problem, but, and it's a big but, I would say Bawtry to Hull is too far as 'a reasonable distance'. An MOT should be a standard test wherever it is done and a quick google finds half a dozen MOT testers in Bawtry alone. Your location on the forum is given as Hull, so I assume that's where your licence address is too, so it would be more reasonable for the plod to say that you are moving the car from one town to another for your convenience, that might be OK for a trader using trade plates but I wouldn't expect it to be OK for a private individual.

[Tannaton]

My suggestion would be first apply for a replacement V5 using form V62 which you can download or get from the post office. if you do get a straight replacement without changing any keeper or address details it usually comes through in a week or less. Once you get the new one through, changing keeper details will be much simpler and quicker, you don't need to wait for the new one to sort the MOT out.

I would then get the car recovered from Bawtry to Hull, if it rolls it shouldn’t cost too much with a friendly local recovery firm, work the mileage out and get some quotes.

I agree with chap above if you do get stopped, which i think is very unlikely if you avoid the motorways, that story might not stack up as a simple MOT, especially if it’s been out of test for over a year. The other thing to be mindful of is if the car fails with any defects that are “dangerous” which can be simple tyre cuts or tread issues, you cannot drive it home legally, hence you may want to go the extra effort to get it tested at a place you know and trust. What about insurance? If you are considering driving the car on a DOC extension on your own policy? If the car isn't specifically covered by a policy that will complicate any interactions you may have.

The flip side to all this is if the car has been stood for two years, it will benefit massively from a 50 mile drive to get it warm and the brakes bedded in again…

Are you planning to sell it? Your other option might be to sell it as is and then the MOT is someone else’s problem, though I appreciate you may have an emotional attachment to it or would want to get the best price for your mum.

[Martin Cox]

That's more or less along the lines I was thinking. With regard to insurance, I was intending to take out another policy for the car and then cancel it when the vheicle is sold. Poking arouind some of the comparison sites I was agreeably surprised by the prices.

Although I haven't made a claim since 1989 apart from a windscreen in 2019, obviously as far as insuring a second vehicle you start with no NCD. Even with no NCD, Direct Line quoted £360 for a year fully comp which came down to £280 if I added my wife as well; so that's the way to go on that one.

We've no emotional attachment to the car but having the use of it for a couple of months would be very helpful to me prior to it being sold.

I think the option of an MoT in Bawtry is worth exploring and on reflection that's probably the best way forward.

There's also a 940 saloon sitting there too but that's whole other problem and not one for today!

I can vouch for a good drive having benefits prior to an MoT. When I got my 1998 V70 Tdi back on the road after a cambelt failure I took it to Riverside in Hull for the MoT. I've used them for years and they had done every previous MoT on the car.

Come the fateful day I had the inevitable phone call; "It's failed on emissions. However we thought it's because it's been standing for 9 months so we took it for a blast along the A63 and then it passed no problem".

[Tannaton]

It might be worth looking if your current insurer has any "multi car" options, you usually get an introductory year or two of NCD.

If you do insure the car yourself on a normal domestic policy, I think you need to be the legal owner (but that does not necessarily mean the V5 has to be updated - the V5 lists the registered keeper not the legal owner). You could of course simply say your mother has gifted it to you.

[Martin Cox]

I did consider that but this may not be the best route for the following reason. I'm hoping to get the car back on the road in time for my daughter to use it when she visits us from New Zealand.

She holds a full UK licence in addition to her NZ one and I'm hoping to be able to add her as a named driver. However I'm currently insured with Saga and they have been very reluctant to add anybody under 50 to a policy. Understandable since their speciality is policies for the over 50s.

However it's probably a bit early to worry about that yet!

I think we're getting way off-topic now so my apologies.

Martin