A study by HiQ Tyres & Autocare has found that one in five vehicles aged five years or younger fail their MOT on the first attempt. The findings, from a six-week study, challenge the common belief that newer vehicles are inherently more roadworthy and suggest that drivers may be neglecting essential maintenance.
As expected, older vehicles showed higher failure rates, with 31% of vehicles aged 6-10 years and 50% of 11-15 year-old vehicles failing. However, the unexpected number of failures in newer models highlights what the company calls a “worrying level of complacency.”
Craig Sprigmore, Retail Director UK & Ireland at HiQ Tyres & Autocare, said: “Our findings suggest a worrying level of complacency when it comes to the maintenance of newer vehicles, with many drivers mistakenly assuming that age alone guarantees roadworthiness. Sadly, that is not always the case.” He added that many common reasons for failure—such as worn tyres, faulty lamps, or issues with wipers—are easily avoidable with routine checks.
The study also revealed that some of the oldest vehicles performed better than expected. Vehicles aged 21-24 years had a 53% first-time pass rate, outperforming the 47% pass rate of vehicles aged 16-20 years. Sprigmore noted that this indicates “diligent maintenance can keep vehicles in very good shape for the road, regardless of their age.”
HiQ is urging drivers to not be complacent about vehicle maintenance and reminds them that they offer free safety checks at their 190 autocentres nationwide.
Source: HiQ