The MOT Confidence Report: How much do UK drivers really trust their garages?

Each year, over 30 million MOTs are carried out across the UK. It’s a legal requirement that causes uncertainty and anxiety for many drivers, despite being an annual routine. According to our research, over half of drivers worry about hidden costs, and nearly one in two admit they feel anxious when booking or attending their MOT test. This anxiety is fuelled by fears of unexpected failures, hidden costs, or being pressured into unnecessary repairs. 

To better understand these worries, MOT experts at Fixter have commissioned a nationwide survey exploring how British vehicle owners really feel about MOTs. The results reveal practical challenges, mistrust, and knowledge gaps that leave many drivers feeling confused and powerless.

Taking this a step further, we ran a real-world experiment to put that mistrust to the test. A male and a female caller contacted over 100 garages across the country for identical repair quotes, helping uncover whether certain groups are more likely to face inflated prices.

Our in-house car maintenance and MOT experts at Fixter have also shared their practical advice to help you navigate the MOT process with confidence. If you don’t know Fixter yet, our mission is to provide transparent, trustworthy and accessible car maintenance that puts drivers first and promotes fairness across the industry.

Key Findings from the Fixter MOT Confidence Report

Below is a just taster of the biggest highlights from the report:

• 30% of UK drivers admit to having driven without a valid MOT at some point.

• Only 3% correctly identified everything that’s checked during an MOT, despite 44% answering that they know what’s tested.

• Almost one in two people (46%) feel anxious when booking or attending an MOT

• Over a third (32%) of UK motorists don’t trust garages or mechanics to be fair and transparent.

• More than half (55%) believe gender affects how people are treated when booking or attending an MOT.

• Women are almost twice as likely as men to feel they’ve been overcharged for car maintenance because of their gender.

• 72% of younger drivers (aged 19 - 24) say they believe they’ve been overcharged for car maintenance because of their age.

• 80% of motorists would prefer to use a mechanic or garage they’ve been recommended for an MOT.

The UK’s attitudes towards MOTs

It’s a yearly ritual most UK drivers dread, booking an MOT. While the test itself is designed to keep our roads safe, Fixter’s MOT Confidence Report shows that many motorists view the experience with anxiety and confusion.

 This anxiety is rooted in a deeper lack of faith, with more than a third of drivers saying they don’t fully trust garages or mechanics to be fair and transparent. 

In fact, half of motorists believe some garages even deliberately fail cars to boost their repair work.

When asked what they worry about most, hidden costs (28%) and overcharging (27%) top the list, followed by long waits and unexpected repair delays. 

Most common concerns around MOTs

Driving without an MOT

This atmosphere of anxiety and scepticism has also influenced how drivers behave around their MOTs. Nearly one in three drivers (30%) admit to having driven without a valid MOT at some point. 

Men are more likely to take the risk (35%) compared with 26% of women. By age, compliance increases steadily with experience: half of 25-34-year-olds have driven without an MOT, compared with just 18% of those aged 65 and over.

Why take the risk? For many, the decision comes down to cost, convenience, or confidence. Drivers delay their test because they:

• Fear being overcharged or upsold once the car is in the garage

• Put it off because they struggle to find a trusted mechanic

• Can’t easily fit an appointment around work or family commitments.

From our many years of experience, there’s often also confusion around MOT expiry dates, with some believing there’s a 14-day grace period after the expiry date, which is a common driving myth.

In reality, driving without a valid MOT can invalidate your insurance and lead to fines of up to £1,000. It’s also about safety! If your car has any issues it may not be safe to drive, meaning you’re putting yourself and any passengers at risk. Learn more about when you can and can't drive without an MOT here.

The cost of pressure

Hidden fees, inflated repair quotes and unexpected add-ons top the list of MOT concerns for motorists across the UK, turning what should be a routine check into a financial guessing game. Almost one in five drivers say they’ve faced pressure or upselling during their MOT, with around the same number reporting that they’ve felt pushed into repairs they didn’t believe were necessary.

That financial uncertainty quickly transforms anxiety into pressure once the car is in the garage. Each conversation about “urgent” repairs or “recommended work” can feel like a negotiation rather than a service. These cumulative experiences chip away at trust, leaving many drivers uncertain whether advice is genuine or simply salesmanship.

Common complaints with MOTs

A striking point is how differently these encounters are interpreted. Women and men report similar rates of upselling and overcharging, but women are far more likely to believe it reflects bias rather than bad luck. Nearly seven in ten women believe they’ve been overcharged because of their gender, compared with less than a third of men.

For younger drivers, the story is similar. While roughly a third of 18 to 44-year-olds say they’ve been overcharged, 72% of 18 to 24-year-olds believe it happened because of their age.

This gap between experience and attribution exposes how fragile confidence has become. For many motorists, every unexpected recommendation feels like confirmation of bias or exploitation. 

MOT knowledge gaps

While 44% of drivers said they “know exactly what’s checked” during an MOT, only a small fraction actually do. 

Just 3% of respondents in our survey correctly identified all the components that are inspected during the test. 

This means that nearly four in five UK drivers misunderstand the scope of the MOT, confusing it with general maintenance or repair work. It’s a revealing statistic that explains why so many motorists feel uncertain or distrustful about what happens once their car is in the garage.

To understand where that confusion lies, we asked respondents to identify what they believe is checked as part of the MOT.

The most common checks drivers mistakenly thought were covered in MOTs

These findings show how common it is for drivers to confuse MOT inspection with general car maintenance. While oil levels and clutch wear are important for performance, they are not part of the legal checks covered in an MOT.

The MOT checks drivers didn’t believe were covered in MOT’s

Equally revealing are the features drivers failed to recognise as official MOT items. Many overlooked some of the simplest safety components, such as mirrors, seatbelts and even registration plates, highlighting how limited many drivers’ understanding of the test really is.

The specifics of that confusion are telling. Most drivers don’t appear to fully understand that an MOT is designed to prove road safety, not vehicle health. By mistaking maintenance for compliance, motorists leave themselves open to confusion, mistrust, and unnecessary costs. Make sure you're brushed up on what's checked on an MOT before you go for your next test.

Is there a gender bias in MOTs?

More than half (55%) of motorists believe gender affects how people are treated when booking or attending an MOT. With women being almost twice as likely as men to feel they’ve been overcharged for car maintenance because of their gender.

This aligns with wider consumer studies across industries, showing that women often encounter “pink tax” pricing or patronising treatment in traditionally male-dominated sectors. Unfortunately, motoring remains a very male-dominated area for now, so it’s understandable that women feel this way.

When it comes to MOT anxiety, men and women worry about different things. Women are more likely to fear hidden costs and unexpected delays, at 29% and 24% respectively, compared with 26% and 22% of men. This reflects a deeper concern about transparency and communication.

Men, on the other hand, tend to be more sceptical of the work itself. They’re more likely to suspect exaggerated issues that lead to bigger bills (22% of men vs 17% of women) or to feel pressured into approving extra repairs (19% vs 16%). 

This suggests men’s mistrust is more focused on integrity and fairness, while women’s is rooted in clarity and transparency, two parts of the same confidence gap that Fixter helps to fix.

So, how differently are men and women really treated by garages across the UK? Well, let's find out...

The great British MOT fairness experiment 

To really put to the test how fair and transparent garage pricing is, we ran a caller experiment. One male caller (Simon) and one female caller (Sarah) phoned the same set of independent garages, at different times, using a controlled script and asking for the same job: a car battery replacement and fitting for a 2017 Ford Fiesta.

Across all responses, the results revealed that both men and women were often given broad, non-committal price ranges. However, Simon tended to be quoted higher overall. 

On average, he was quoted around £188 for a battery replacement and fitting, compared with £167 for Sarah, a difference of roughly 12.5%.

Perhaps even more striking than the difference between male and female callers was the overall inconsistency in the pricing itself. Some provided full “supply and fit” figures including VAT, while others quoted for parts only or excluded labour and taxes altogether. 

This lack of standardisation makes it almost impossible for the average driver to compare quotes like-for-like, leaving plenty of room for confusion, and, potentially, unfairness.

While this was a snapshot study, the findings hint that both genders face the same challenge of trying to decode vague or inconsistent pricing.

That’s where Fixter makes a difference. With a panel of vetted garages, standardised up-front costs, and no hidden extras, Fixter takes the uncertainty out of garage quotes. You’ll always know exactly what you’re paying for, with parts, labour, and VAT included. Allowing you to book with confidence, not guesswork. Their customer support team is also on hand to help decode your MOT results and ensure you’re not paying unfairly or for unnecessary work.

The most common MOT failures and how to avoid them

Even with the best intentions, many MOT failures come down to small, preventable issues. Our car maintenance experts share the five areas most likely to trip drivers up, and how simple maintenance can keep your car road-ready all year.

1. Windscreen wipers and washers

Wipers and washers are essential for visibility, yet they’re among the most common MOT failure points. Blades wear faster than many realise, as the rubber hardens, splits, or begins to smear the glass, and washer nozzles can clog with dirt or limescale.

How to avoid it: Replace wiper blades at the first sign of streaking or noise. Keep washer fluid topped up and test spray pressure regularly; if jets are weak, a quick clean with a pin usually restores flow.

2. Lighting and bulbs

Faulty lighting remains one of the top reasons for MOT failure. Headlights, brake lights, indicators, and number-plate bulbs all count toward a pass. Even a single blown bulb can trigger an instant fail.

How to avoid it: Once a week, do a quick walk-around check. Turn on your lights, indicators, and hazards, and ask someone to confirm your brake lights. If lenses look cloudy, wipe them clean. Replace any dim or flickering bulbs immediately, it’s a quick, inexpensive fix.

3. Tyres

Your tyres are your only contact with the road, so tread depth and condition are key to both safety and compliance. The legal minimum tread depth is 1.6 mm, but anything below 3 mm can seriously reduce grip, especially in rain.

How to avoid it: Check your tyres regularly. Use the 20-p test: insert a 20-p coin into the tread. If you can see the coin’s outer band, it’s time for new tyres. Check tyre pressure every couple of weeks and adjust to the PSI listed in your car manual or on the driver’s-door sticker. Watch for bulges or uneven wear, which can indicate alignment issues.

4. Brakes

Brake faults are another leading cause of MOT failures. Worn brake discs, pads, or uneven braking can all result in a fail and, more importantly, compromise your safety.

How to avoid it: Listen for squealing or grinding noises, feel for vibration through the pedal, and note if the car pulls to one side under braking. Schedule a brake inspection annually or if anything feels off, and remember to replace brake fluid roughly every two years to maintain stopping power.

5. Dashboard warning lights

Modern cars use sensors to monitor critical systems. If a dashboard warning light, particularly for airbags, emissions, or brakes, stays illuminated, the car can automatically fail its MOT.

How to avoid it: Never ignore warning lights. If one remains on after start-up, book a diagnostic check. Sometimes it’s a simple fix, like a loose sensor, but leaving it unresolved could mean a fail later. Regular servicing helps catch these electronic issues before test day.

Transparency is the key to rebuilding trust. Our model is designed around that principle, offering collection and delivery, vetted local garages, and clear, upfront pricing. No hidden costs, no unnecessary upselling, and no pressure. Just a service that puts the driver first.

By combining convenience, clarity, and transparency, Fixter is proving that car maintenance doesn’t have to be confusing or stressful. It can, and should, be fair, efficient, and built on trust.

How Fixter Is Rebuilding MOT Trust

At Fixter, the goal is simple: take the uncertainty out of car care.

Every Fixter garage is vetted in person by our team of experts and must maintain 4- or 5-star customer ratings to stay in our network. We check everything from service quality to communication and transparency, so our customers know they’re in safe hands.

Each booking comes with a 12-month warranty on parts and labour, and all prices are fixed upfront, so you know exactly what your money is getting you.

Fixter also handles every part of the process, including collection and delivery of your vehicle! Fixter liaises with the garage, negotiates the best prices and relays information to drivers clearly. That means no waiting around, no awkward calls, no confusion about what’s wrong with your car. It’s modern car care designed for real people.

Sources and Methodology

To explore the UK’s attitudes, experiences, and knowledge around MOTs, we conducted a nationwide survey of motorists’ opinions and behaviours.

Survey data: 

Our findings are based on a survey of 1,503 UK drivers conducted in October 2025. Respondents were representative of the UK population by age, gender, and nearest city. The survey included multiple-choice and scaled response questions designed to uncover:

• Driver’s trust levels and perceptions of fairness around MOTs and garages.

• Experiences of pressure or upselling during MOTs.

• MOT habits, such as driving without a valid MOT and booking behaviours.

• Knowledge of what is actually checked during an MOT test.

Call data:

We also phoned 108 garages across 27 towns and cities in the UK with both a male and female caller to ask for a battery replacement on a 2017 Ford Fiesta. Questions were asked about pricing, availability, and what’s included in the work via a predetermined script.