Caravan MOTs......... maybe?
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will there be an extra charge...............
And a charging lead no longer than 2 mtr's
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Probably better to sort out Brexit and the country first though
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Then after 40 years they become MOT exempt like older cars.
Now there's a challenge to the manufactures, build a caravan that will last.
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But that is a failing system as evidenced by 'pool cars' and accidents that occur with roadworthy and unroadworthy MoT certificated cars most days.
What would be the pass/fail parameters?:
Suspension? Emissions?
How would you test for badly loaded caravans on submission to test? Or badly loaded tow car?
Incorrect noseweight?
Incompatible electrics twixt caravan and tow car? This last weekend I followed one unit to site that had problems with the car / caravan indicator interface. When I mentioned it to the driver the response was 'it's always done that, but the car is being changed soon so it won't matter'. Unless of course the next car does the same. A second unit I followed to site had no lights working on the rear of the caravan, fortunately I noticed before my cars radar system activated. When I mentioned it to the driver the response was 'the caravan has lots of problems, thats a new one'.
Would the tow car require submission at the same time? Would each combination of car / caravan have to be tested together?
What if its towed with a car with incorrect tow ball for the hitch? How would you test that?
A car MoT is from £20 to £54.85 currently, what would a caravan be?
A caravan serviced by a dealer / approved workshop currently has a sticker with the year on it affixed to the A frame cover indicating a service has been carried out. How would one know a caravan has an MoT?
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Wouldn't need a number plate, Just use the Vin No Like HGV trailers.
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Better still, how about a unique identifier in big letters on the roof like police cars, buses etc.
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Cars and caravans now have visible VIN plates. In the lower windscreen of cars, by the habitation door on caravans. The VIN is key to the identity of the vehicle.
The current car MoT system uses the VIN number to record the history of the car at DVLAs end. When a registration (number plate) number is input to the online tool or at an MoT Test Centre it will only give the record of the car that particular plate is currently registered to on a valid ticket. So if the car has had number plates changed for 'cherished numbers' you won't necessarily know the history. A key part of the car MoT is the mileage record, how would a caravans mileage be recorded? The MoT history can tell an awful lot about how roadworthy a car is. Has it spent its life near the sea? It may look immaculate polished up, but is the underneath behind the inaccessible plastic covers rot free? The MoT doesn't allow a full inspection and records 'unable to determine condition due to non access' or similar. Again a failing of the MoT system. In days of yore a rotted cill was easy to determine.
In order to establish the MoT history of a car that has no registration assigned to it, just cos it has a plate affixed doesn't mean its the car that the plate really is, you need the VIN number. MoT Test Centres will normally charge £10 for the MoT Record print out.
DVLA and the motor industry manage recalls by the VIN number. Manufacturers use the VIN to identify what the vehicle actually is in terms of parts.
There are online tools and apps to interpret VIN numbers.
Different number plates just adds cost and bureaucracy, but no value. Must be a government idea
A car can be SORN and not subject to an MoT for up to 5 years, will that apply to a caravan? You could leave it on seasonal pitch for years and not tow it on the road
I return to my earlier point that caravans get an annual service to maintain warranty with the 3 year being dependant on a small time window, why not align any test to that system?
Will caravans be viable in the time it'll take to sort any MoT system?
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Most accident statistics look at injury or deaths, thankfully MOTs , safer roads and cars have reduced fatalities/injury to a quarter of those experienced in the 1960s which is a significant achievement given how many more cars there are now on the road. As stated earlier in this thread caravans are involved in very few accidents involving injury, What is difficult to get from the stats is accidents causing no injuries but massive disruption.. How many times have you been delayed on the motorway to find the remaining matchwood of what was once a caravan? Loading, tyres, suspension, speed, age of van, serviced? All possible factors.
I suppose it could be argued that once the MOT'd vehicle accident rate has fallen sufficiently the test could be dropped entirely then we could all save £££s
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