Halfords MOT

Has anybody had Halfords MOT their trucks...my question is are they any good, or just looking for work :?:

Barrie, Halfords / National Tyres / etc all offer cheap MOT's for one reason only, to gain additional work.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that your averidge garage doesn't rub their hands with potential glee at MOT time BUT you only have to do a quick Google search to read the horror story's of exhaust systems that where fine but once on the ramp a mysterious hole the same size as a screw driver blade has suddenly appeared or the drive shaft gaiter that's got fresh grease coming from the "perished" boot which for some reason has no signs of road debris or dirt on so it must have split this morning and so on.
If you can find a garage you can trust, get them to do it for you. Even if they sub contract their MOT's as I do they will usually have a relationship with that business based on mutual trust. Personally I use my local ish "Just MOT's" the guy's are quick, honest and fair. I'm not sure I'd be comfortable saying the same thing of the local Halfrauds Service Center.

I use a local garage that is happy for me to shadow him so I can inspect my truck at the same time. Lets me get a good view of underneath to spot potential future issues. Also means they cannot "discover" failure points.

As an aside I would never ever use a council MOT station. I have seen far too many vehicles come out of there that should be refused to go on the road for being dangerous. The MOT is there for a reason. I would much prefer my truck to be failed for a genuine reason, rather than get a cheeky ticket only to have a wheel fall off at 60mph with a 2 ton trailer on the back.

Neal, if you don't mind my asking... Why NOT a council MOT place?
To my mind at least, the best place to have the test done is somewhere that has absolutely no interest in pitching for any work - so, either a dedicated MOT only garage, or the local council vehicle depot.

Genuine interest, this, as my last ticket was from my city council and I was quite happy with the result.

Last edited by Mr Mud on Tue Mar 26, 2013 9:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Thanks for info guys..and after what Mark said I've given up the idea of going to a Halfrauds Service Centre, however I've taken Jim's comments on board and have booked my truck into the Eastleigh Borough Council MOT test station at Hedge End (down our Jim's way) as this is the nearest one...most local council's nowadays don't do MOT's any more

Barrie, if a council has its own vehicle depot/MOT tester, they are legally obliged to offer MOTs to the general public.

That's only about 5 minutes up the road from me. When are you booked, could come and put a face to the name?

I took the 2.8 to Halfords for its MOT but only because I get it half price as staff discount... And a free retest within 10days if it fails lol. Before now I took it to the council MOT and found them to be fair and very friendly... Even asked me to help out lol

All stations now offer free retest within working 10 days ... also the retest is only a check on the bits that have failed the first time.

And also depends on whether you have the work done at the station, or take it away, then bring it back again after it's been done.

The poster in the MOT centre explains what does/doesn't qualify for free retests as far as the DfT regulations go, anything over and above that is a bonus.

I wouldn't say it is fair to sack off all council MOT places. Obviously there will be some MOT places, council or not, that just pass any old skip and eventually these places will get caught out. I use council places and usually go for the larger test centres and have never had a problem or had another mechanic say it was dangerous. The council places i've been have been as honest as they could be whilst doing it, pointing out any areas of concern for future MOT's.

My most recent council MOT, the guy overran into his own time double checking that a corroded rear bump stop was definitely ok to be passed. He could have just failed or passed it but wanted to make sure.

That being said, i'm sure there are plenty who would just tick all the boxes for the £50

I believe the MOT centre also has the right to refuse to allow a vehicle back on the road again if it deemed too unsafe ... I might be wrong though.

Afraid that's not quite right mate.
VOSA can place a prohibition notice on the Vehicle the same as Police and Customs(although different legal powers from separate legislation are used by each) and they can seize the vehicle depending on the circumstances but your averidge MOT station regardless of whether its run by the council or private company CAN NOT refuse to allow you to take the vehicle away regardless of its condition.
You may however be asked to sign a disclaimer stating that the MOT station / garage have made you fully aware of the potential danger of using the vehicle on a Public Highway however you have no legal obligation to sign.

Ahh... thats the one Mark. I thought there was something like that. :thumbup:

No problem mate

Interesting thread this.

I used a couple of MOT stations back in Devon, who were independent garages at the time, and always enjoyed a good relationship with them. They would never fail any of my 'Specials' on silly things, like empty washer bottle, or a bulb out etc, but would give me the option of grabbing some tools, and letting me get on with it before giving me a ticket!

I used to run a 67 beetle, a Lomax 4 wheeler, a Silva Leader, a Moss Malvern, a Volksrod Buggy, and an Espace Quadra depending on the time of year, so you can imagine, the garages would often actually look forward to my visits

, they enjoyed the change from the run of the mill cars I think.

It has been over ten years since I was in the U.K., so I don't know what has changed since moving to France.

What I do like here, is that all the 'Controle Technique' (MOT) stations, are government franchised, hence no affiliation to any garages. The stations are spotless, and have more of an air of a dentists surgery, no tools, no oily floors, palm trees in pots are the order of the day!. The test is fully documented, and split into sub sections which relate to all aspects of the car. The test, once passed, lasts for two years

which can lead to a few bangers limping about on the roads due to lack of maintenance, but from my point of view, and always having maintained my own vehicles, means that I just need to worry Bi-annually!!!