“DVSA” – the new name for VOSA – stops over 10,000 vehicles each year to conduct roadside checks at a cost to owners and operators of up to £4,000 per day per vehicle. The results of these stops showed that 93% of vehicles stopped were found to be overloaded, 63% were found to have serious mechanical defects and 50% would fail a Class 7 MOT test!
“However, almost half of these failures could be prevented through better routine maintenance and daily checks. Recent analysis by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles aftersales team of the VOSA MOT report has shown that over a third (32.8%) of all MOT failures are caused by simple-to-fix faults that should be picked up during routine maintenance.
“When we analysed the most common causes of MOT failures, we found that in most cases simple things such as faulty bulbs, too little tyre tread, or even empty windscreen washer fluid bottles were to fault. In fact, a further quarter of failures are caused by brakes and suspension (15.3% and 14.2%) where standard routine maintenance would prevent the MOT failure and minimise the amount of downtime required for an MOT.
“Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles enjoys one of the best MOT test success rates in the industry with an average 98% pass rate across the Van Centre network. This pass rate is achieved in part by our specialist Van Centre teams giving every vehicle that pass through their workshop a visual check.
“These regular visual checks of vehicles can ensure that any potential risks are flagged up and dealt with before the vehicle heads out on the road. The inspections also ensure that our customers are aware of any potential problems to allow them to deal with them in good time, to help prevent any costly surprises.
“But clearly our van centres don’t service every van on the road. So it’s important for business to ensure their vehicles are roadworthy to help reduce the number of vehicles failing MOTs. The only way this can happen is for companies to invest time in keeping on top of regular maintenance and load capacities that will in turn prevent the possibility of fines and expensive parts failures.”
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle suggests the following regular checks
- Headlights and indicators, brake lights
- Wheels and tyres
- Seats and seatbelts
- Windscreen, wipers, screen wash
- Horn
With regular servicing ensuring that any major defects can be identified and dealt with before they cause any further damage.
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