The Daily Observer London Desk: Reporter- Kathryn Williams
A small Welsh spa town has the dubious honour of having the highest MOT failure rate in Britain, according to new research.
Between June 2021 and June 2022 almost one in two cars booked in for its annual roadworthiness test in Llandrindod, Powys, Wales fails its MOT.
More than half of the highest failure rates are in Scotland, according to research gathered by National Scrap Car.
The study’s authors said: ‘Booking your car in for an MOT can be a nerve-wracking experience, you might think your car is in tip-top condition, but you take it to your MOT thinking it will pass and you are handed a fail with a big bill to pay.’
Dundee, which is Scotland’s fourth-largest city has a failure rate of 38.7 per cent.
Londoners, unsurprisingly, have the lowest failure rates according to the data.
Almost one in two cars in Llandrindod, Powys, Wales fails its MOT according to new research
After an MOT failure, many cars face the ignominious trip to a breaker’s yard where they will be stripped for parts enabling other cars to continue motoring. Eventually, their skeletal remains are sent to the crusher
Scottish towns and regions also feature in the top ten MOT failure locations
The worrying failure levels come as the Government is considering relaxing the rules on when cars need to have their first MOT.
Ministers believe that motorists will appreciate the savings if they are only required to submit their car for a test once every two years.
But road safety campaigners and motoring organisations oppose the plan, which they claim could see cars and motorbikes on the road with serious defects.
According to National Scrap Car: ‘Renault was crowned the overall worst car manufacturer for an MOT pass with a failure rate of 37 per cent. Renault, the French brand which dates all the way back to 1899 has proven quite popular in the UK with 48,728 sales in 2021.
‘In second place came the iconic British manufacturer MINI with an overall failure rate of 30.2 per cent – despite only having 5 models in its range.
| Worst Ranking | Location | Failure Rate | Best Ranking | Location | Failure Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Llandrindod Wells | 48% | 1 | East London | 16.3% |
| 2 | Dundee | 38.7% | 2 | Enfield | 16.7% |
| 3 | Kirkcaldy | 36.4% | 3 | Romford | 16.9% |
| 4 | Truro | 35.8% | 4 | Uxbridge | 17.1% |
| 5 | Perth | 35.8% | 5 | Ilford | 17.6% |
| 6 | Falkirk | 33.9% | 6 | South East London | 17.6% |
| 7 | Plymouth | 33.8% | 7 | Twickenham | 18% |
| 8 | Sunderland | 33.8% | 8 | North London | 18.2% |
| 9 | Telford | 33.4% | 9 | Slough | 18.2% |
| 10 | Dumfries and Galloway | 33.2% | 10 | Croydon | 18.5% |
