For businesses running a fleet of vehicles — whether it’s five or fifty — annual MOTs are more than just a legal requirement. They’re a window into how well your vehicles are being maintained. If you’re seeing a pattern of MOT failures across your fleet, it could be signalling much deeper issues in your management processes.

Here’s what failed MOTs could be trying to tell you about the health of your fleet — and how you can stay ahead of them.

 Repeat Failures Point to Maintenance Gaps

When vehicles repeatedly fail on the same issues — worn tyres, faulty brakes, blown bulbs — it’s a sign that routine maintenance isn’t happening when it should. These aren’t sudden surprises; they’re things that develop over time and could easily be picked up during regular servicing.

If your drivers or garage partners aren’t reporting issues, or if servicing intervals are too far apart, the result is often a failed MOT and unexpected downtime.

What to do:

  • Introduce pre-MOT checks or routine inspections
  • Make sure service schedules are set — and stuck to
  • Use fleet software like FleetConnect to track servicing history and set reminders

 High Failure Rates = Missed Cost-Saving Opportunities

MOT failures cost you more than just repair bills. They often mean:

  • Missed appointments or deliveries
  • Vehicle downtime and rental costs
  • Rebooking fees and administrative delays

Each failure adds up. If a high proportion of your fleet is failing each year, you’re likely bleeding unnecessary costs.

What to do:

  • Review failure trends across your fleet
  • Use authorisation controls to limit costly repairs
  • Audit which garages are seeing high fail rates — and consider switching

⚠️ Drivers May Be Missing Early Warning Signs

Many faults leading to an MOT fail — like dashboard warning lights, low tyre tread, or noisy brakes — don’t appear overnight. If your drivers aren’t flagging these, it might be due to a lack of knowledge or training.

This not only leads to MOT issues, but also puts your business at risk when it comes to Duty of Care responsibilities.

What to do:

  • Provide drivers with basic training on vehicle warning signs
  • Ensure they carry out regular walkaround checks
  • Supply a simple checklist or app for them to log issues

 Fleet Data Can Help You Predict (and Prevent) Failures

By tracking MOT outcomes across your fleet, you can identify problem vehicles, garage performance, or areas where maintenance is slipping. A digital platform like FleetConnect allows you to:

  • View servicing and MOT history per vehicle
  • Monitor patterns of advisory items becoming failures
  • Set alerts so that no vehicle slips through the cracks

When your data is centralised, it becomes much easier to make proactive decisions — instead of reacting to problems after they’ve already cost you time and money.

✅ Final Thought: Use MOTs as a Fleet Health Check

An MOT should never be the first time you hear about a vehicle issue. Treat it instead as a final confirmation that your fleet maintenance processes are working.

A low MOT failure rate isn’t just a tick-box success — it’s a sign of a well-managed, cost-efficient, and compliant fleet.