Results
of the FBHVC survey for the DfT consultation on the proposal
to exempt all pre 60s vehicles from the annual MoT test
See
the last FBHVC newsletters
February
2012 Newsletter
December
2011 Newsletter
November
2011 Newsletter
See our earlier NEWS item on the MoT exemption proposals.
NEWS061211
NEWS 231111
NEWS 071111
What is the FBHVC?
The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs. More
DfT MOT consultation
It straddled a difficult period as many classic car enthusiasts
were likely to be distracted by seasonal events - the consultation
ran from early December 2011 to mid January 2012.
Posted: 110212
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The
FBHVC MOT survey results have been published based
on the survey contributions of over 4,000 participants.
The results will help the FBHVC represent the interests
of historic car enthusiasts and shape its responses
to politicians and the DfT consultation process.
FBHVC MOT survey report. More
FBHVC MOT survey results. More
& More
The DfT had launched a consultation process on its
MOT exemption proposals to get the views from historic
vehicle owners.
See our earlier NEWS item. More |
Summary of the FBHVC survey results
> 74% of respondents wish to see testing requirements
for historic vehicles relaxed.
> 59% support the government's preferred option
of exempting all pre-1960 vehicles.
> 71% believe historic vehicles in commercial
use should be subject to testing even if other pre-1960
vehicles are exempted; 14% said commercial use should
make no difference to testing requirements.
> 53% of respondents said they would take their
vehicles for test if this could be done on a voluntary
basis; 33% said they would not seek a voluntary
test.
The opinions and reasons for the views expressed
by the survey respondents were qualified in many
of the responses with conditional statements that
the choice only applied if various conditions were
met. The most common conditions were that there
should be:
> no risk of restriction on use;
> no risk of increased insurance premiums for
untested vehicles;
> no risk of insurers demanding (expensive) engineer's
reports;
> some facility for a formal standardised test
to demonstrate roadworthiness.
Comments
Arguments for and against the proposals:
unlike other consultations, where the interests
of historic vehicle owners are obvious, there are
powerful arguments for and against all options.
The FBHVC indicates it needs to know what historic
vehicle owners think before responding to the DfT
consultation with their interests in mind.
Pre-1960s vehicles: whilst the exemption
proposals affect cars up to 1960, and so do not
cover MGBs, MGCs, MGBGTV8s and MG RV8s, this is
a newsworthy issue of interest to V8 enthusiasts,
some of whom have pre-1960s MGs or other older vehicles.
But wider issues are a concern, particularly unintended
consequences.
Unintended consequences: whilst it may be
attractive to some owners of low use historic vehicles
to have MoT exemption, there is a risk that once
Government sees that class of vehicles in a separate
group then it may feel inclined to consider restrictions
on the use of the class of vehicle. On balance the
useful annual discipline of preparing and
presenting a classic MG like an MGBGTV8 or MG RV8
for an MoT test seems worthwhile, particularly if
you take your car to an MoT test station which is
both knowledgeable and careful with your V8 as they
may spot a useful maintenance concern in the course
of the test. |
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