ALL THINGS LICENSING
The MOT guidance states that the DVSA has no involvement in setting these higher standards so any appeal against them has to be dealt with by the authority, not DVSA.
Exemption/Compliance Certificates cannot be issued until the vehicle
However, where a vehicle is being tested by (or on behalf of a council) at an appointed testing station, it is possible for the examiner to issue an MOT certificate as well as a vehicle test pass whilst conducting checks on the vehicle against both criteria. Each local authority will have a policy on this, and may charge an additional fee for the MOT certificate and record to be produced and updated.
Hopefully the above has clarified that the MOT and Section 50 test, whilst both are an inspection of the vehicle, are against different criteria for different reasons.
SO, WHAT IS A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE?
This is where an additional complication is thrown into the mix because it is possible for a local authority to issue a ‘Compliance Certificate’ in lieu of an MOT Certificate.
The MOT guide for testing stations sets out that taxis and private hire vehicles that are licensed by certain authorities do not need to have an MOT Certificate and can be issued with a Compliance Certificate instead.
This is not an MOT Certificate and will not be recorded on the national DVLA database.
This Compliance Certificate is effectively the
designated authority being able to issue the vehicle with an exemption, under regulation 6 of the Motor Vehicles (Tests) Regulations 1981, from the legal requirement to have an MOT Certificate under section 4 Road Traffic Act 1988.
However, again this only applies where the council is certified by the Secretary of State to do so. Designated authorities may test vehicles not only to MOT standards, but to also incorporate additional Policy and Condition requirements set out above to ensure the vehicle is suitable to be a licensed hackney carriage or private hire vehicle.
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has been tested by or on behalf of the authority to standards that at least equal those for MOT tests.
It is also important to note that when a taxi or private hire vehicle ceases to be licensed, its owner must obtain a normal MOT certificate.
WHY ISSUE A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE?
Clearly if a vehicle is being inspected to a standard equal if not higher than an MOT, then some councils have gone down the route of issuing a Compliance Certificate to say the vehicle meets the MOT standard. This could be cost effective to the trade through not having to obtain a separate MOT.
CAN A VEHICLE HOLD BOTH A COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE & AN MOT CERTIFICATE?
Yes, a vehicle can hold both. As set out above, the Compliance Certificate is not recorded on the DVLA database, which as Dave Lawrie’s previous article describes can cause some difficulty in the vehicle being seen publicly not to have an MOT. Taxing the vehicle can also prove difficult with the proprietor being require to complete an additional Declaration of Exemption from MOT V112 form.
Some authorities elect to issue a normal MOT certificate in addition to an exemption certificate in order to negate these potential difficulties. This also provides the vehicle owner the same facility of appeal to DVSA as anyone who has been refused or issued with an MOT certificate.
This subject often causes confusion for both drivers and licensing staff and I would again urge members of the trade to join the IoL to be sure that they stay on top of how this (and other) complicated areas of licensing work.
For full details, please visit:
www.instituteoflicensing.org.
NOVEMBER 2023 PHTM
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