MoT - Issue 49 - Jan 2011

MMOOT TMATTERS OF TESTING MATTERS OF TESTING

ISSUE 49

Free for authorised examiners and testers

JANUARY 2011 JANUARY 2011

ISSUE 49

Strengthen your skills The benefits of learning and development

Inside this issue...

Evolvingthe MOT testpage 4

Motorcycle test refresher courses

page 6

AE guilty of faking MOT tests

page 12

Fromtheeditor This New Year, our resolution is all about improvement — better services, better value for money, better results. So we’re kicking off with an issue dedicated to learning, training and education — ours and yours. Take a look at page 7 for our commitment to learn, adapt and improve based on your feedback.

At the top of everyone’s ‘to do’ list just now is this year’s round of MOT seminars. Those of you who haven’t yet bought your tickets can download and complete a booking form at www.vosa.gov.uk/ events-diary. Some of you may be asking whether you can afford to go. But for just £25 plus VAT and covering important information on 2009/40, changes to MOT Comp and updates on Site Assessment, the question is really, ‘Can you afford to miss them?’.

On page 6 motorcycle testers get a crash course in items often missed during test, and page 12 warns what happens when authorised examiners start faking it. We’ve dedicated our centre spread to telling you more about the MOT test data available on the internet, which you can use to inform your business or just to satisfy your curiosity about the trends and statistics of your industry.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year.

JessieVanBeck

Keep your comments, rants, opinions and ideas coming in to:

The Editor Matters of Testing VOSA, Berkeley House Croydon Street Bristol BS5 0DA or email: [email protected]

You can view this magazine, along with previous issues, as a PDF on the VOSA website: www.vosa.gov.uk/ matters-of-testing

Contents

3 AskStevo… Stevo talks you through transforming your testing station into an Authorised Testing Facility

4 News Evolving the MOT test, Tester training review, MOT test text message reminders, Changes to Matters of Testing, MOT testing leaflets, Take That MOT Comp!, Feed into the Trade User Group, MOT training moves to Chelmsford

6 Bikes,trikesandquads Motorbike test refresher courses

7 Feature You’re never too clever to learn!

8 MOTdataatyourfingertips Look no further for MOT trends — and much, much more!

10 Spotlighton... MOT Comp — time for some housekeeping

11 Horrorstory On the rebound; caught in a bind

12 AEguiltyoffakingMOTtests The consequences of bucking the system

13 Theknowledge Inspection Manual refresher course

14 T-brake Take a tea break with the funny pages

Your MoT team

Editorial Team Jessie VanBeck, Ian Marsh, Alan Wilson, John Stephenson, Andy Cattell

MOT Team John Corcoran, Shaun Martin, Roland Batchelor, Dougie Brandon, Steve Kendall, Mark Bennett, Russell Hall

Distribution If you have any problems with or queries about distribution, please contact the editor at [email protected]

Produced by COI on behalf of VOSA (ref 403946) on 50% recycled paper.

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Editorial office VOSA, 2nd Floor, Berkeley House, Croydon Street, Bristol BS5 0DA

While great care has been taken to ensure accuracy, VOSA and the editorial team cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions. The content of this publication should not be reproduced without the consent of the editor.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 3

OPINION

Ask Stevo… Upgrading to Authorised Testing Facility status

You ask: I have a Class 4 and 7 vehicle testing station and tachograph centre. I also carry out national vehicle recovery. I maintain all my recovery trucks on the Class 7 MOT pit, which is 10m long and has proved to be extremely useful for truck maintenance. Can I also use these facilities to MOT test my 7.5 tonne trucks and issue them with certificates?

Stevo says: It’s all down to the regulations. The Motor Vehicles (Tests) Regulations 1981 as amended (MVTR) cover the testing of vehicle classes 1 to 7. The MVTR include goods vehicles but only those with a design gross weight of up to and including 3,500kg. With the exception of Class 6(A), all these vehicles can be tested at a private testing station. Class 6(A) covers public service vehicles (PSVs), and MVTR only allow these to be tested by VOSA.

Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) – including your 7.5 tonne trucks – must be plated and tested and therefore fall under the Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1988 as amended. Again, these regulations only allow these vehicles to be tested by VOSA.

However, you may wish to consider applying to become an Authorised Testing Facility (ATF).

ATFs are private premises that have been approved by VOSA for the testing of HGVs, trailers and PSVs. As an ATF you can have VOSA staff test your own HGVs and you can even use VOSA staff to provide testing for third party HGVs/PSVs, if you wish to. Customers can choose to use an ATF instead of a VOSA testing station for large vehicle testing and you will still be able to carry out private vehicle testing.

Find more information on setting up an ATF at www.businesslink.gov.uk/atf.

You can find more information about ATFs on pages 4 and 5 of issue 33 of Moving On, VOSA’s newspaper for HGV and PSV operators, which supplies contact details for VOSA’s ATF Business Development Managers. You can browse the Moving On library at www.vosa.gov.uk/moving-on.

John Stephenson heads up the MOT Compliance team and has a wealth of knowledge and experience in all aspects of the MOT scheme.

Send your comments, queries and views on the MOT to [email protected] with ‘Ask Stevo’ as the subject.

4 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

NEWS

Evolving the MOT test In the last few issues we have told you about changes to the MOT test resulting from Directive 2009/40/EC, which is being updated through Directive 2010/48/EU. Well, things have moved on leaps and bounds over the last few months and we have now agreed and developed all the changes that need to be made prior to introducing them in 2012.

Of course, there is a lot more hard work ahead of us – not only to reprogram MOT Comp but also to communicate the necessary changes. All this starts now – so watch out for a series of Special

Notices over the coming year that will explain what is happening and when. We will be launching new test items, releasing new Inspection Manual pages and helping you to familiarise yourselves with these changes ahead of time.

The year is only just getting started – if you want to know more about the forthcoming changes why not visit one of our MOT seminars that are currently taking place around the country.

Visit www.vosa.gov.uk/events-diary to book your place on the 2011 MOT seminars.

Tester training review Since we asked what you thought about Nominated Tester Training Assessment (NTTA) we’ve received a lot of emails expressing your views on whether it meets modern requirements for testing. Thank you for taking the time to send these in – finding out what you think is important to us.

The points of view you have fed back so far are helping us to put together a formal consultation paper to look at the possible alternatives to NTTA. This paper will, of course, include a full impact assessment on the effects on future testers and the costs of potential alternatives.

More information on this consultation will be released as soon as the details are finalised.

In the meantime, you can continue to email your views or comments to [email protected]. Type ‘Becoming an MOT tester’ in the subject line.

Your next

MOT is due!

MOT test text message reminders Do your customers have trouble remembering to book their next MOT test dates? Do they book too early and lose free MOT time on their vehicle?

Not any more! In 2011 VOSA will launch the MOT text reminder service – which you can promote to your customers as part of your wider MOT test service. Your customers will be able to opt to receive a text on their mobile phones to remind them when their next MOT test is due. Reminders will be sent to UK mobiles five weeks before, two weeks before and on the day before the MOT test due date.

There is a single charge of £1.50 (including VAT) for the set of three reminders about the vehicle’s next

MOT test. This charge will be automatically collected via the mobile phone network once the customer’s registration has been accepted.

To use this service your customers will need:

• a UK mobile phone

• a UK-registered vehicle

• the vehicle’s current V5C document reference number or the vehicle’s latest MOT test number.

Once the service is live, full details will be provided at www.direct.gov.uk/ motreminders – share this web address with your customers to enhance your customer service.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 5

NEWS�

Changes to Matters of Testing Matters of Testing wishes to announce that we will no longer be published on a quarterly basis but will be printed three times a year – in January, May and September. We are pleased to confirm that the MOT Matters series of training DVDs will continue to be distributed with Matters of Testing.

We would like to thank all the authorised examiners (AEs) and testers who continue to express their support for this publication. We hope you will find that the quality of information in future editions makes up for the reduction in frequency.

MOT testing leaflets�Although VOSA is no longer able to provide paper copies of MOT testing leaflets and posters, these are still available online at www.vosa.gov.uk/vehicle-testing-leaflets.

You can use this website to print samples of these leaflets for your customer notice board or provide this web address to customers for their own use.

Take That, MOT Comp! Some of you will remember getting pushed back to emergency testing in November. This was because the phone lines supporting MOT Comp proved no match for the pulling power of Robbie Williams. When tickets went on sale for his first tour in 16 years with the rest of Take That, the level of take-up crashed the telephone system.

Trade User Group�Held every four months, usually in Bristol, the Trade User Group (or TUG, as it is familiarly known) discusses long-term issues such as updates to technical standards, policy and the Service Level Agreement, training courses and forthcoming changes to the test and MOT Comp.

TUG members include representatives from Siemens (for MOT Comp), operators of national network testing stations, VTS Council representatives and

representatives from the trade associations, including the Retail Motor Industry Federation, the Garage Equipment Association and the Scottish Motor Trade Association.

If you would like to raise issues at these meetings, you should do so through your local VTS Council – for more on how to access these, see the back cover.

MOT training moves to Chelmsford�Recent analysis of trainees using the MOT training site at Canterbury College has shown that most of you travel there east from London. In order to reduce travel time, VOSA will close the Canterbury College venue from 31 December 2010, moving training services to a new facility at the VOSA testing station in Chelmsford. The

Chelmsford facility will open on 17 January 2011 and offers free on-site parking as well as a fully equipped workshop and classroom.

VOSA plans to relocate more training venues to newer facilities –watch this space for more information.

6 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

BIKES, TRIKES AND QUADS

Motorcycle test refresher courses

VOSA can automatically lock testers out of MOT Comp if they have not completed their five‑year refresher course. So why have motorcycle testers been getting away with less training for so long? Here we tell you how the playing field is about to be levelled.

VOSA has been slow to activate the automatic suspension from testing since the introduction of the five-year refresher course for Class 1 and 2 testers (the Nominated Tester Training Motor Cycle Refresher, or NTTMCR) because locking the system to those testers who were overdue their refresher course would – up until recently – have brought motorcycle testing to a complete stop.

Switching on the five‑year rule Now, however, we are in a position to insist on refresher training for these testers every five years without serious repercussions to motorcycle testing as a whole. Class 1 and 2 testers can therefore expect to be locked out of MOT Comp if they continue to ignore invitations to attend a training date, leaving them out in the cold when it’s time to test bikes like the new Ducati Diavel or Aprilia Tuono V4R. Invitations may arrive through the post or as an electronic invitation sent to the VTS Device as an alert message. The refresher training itself is free of charge.

A Special Notice will be sent out to tell testing stations when the ‘go-live’ date for automatic lockout will be. In the meantime, anyone who is almost due or overdue their refresh will be sent a manual reminder to attend the earliest convenient course – this will ensure that they will be able to continue testing once the system is activated.

Why do testers need a refresher course? The refresher course is there to make sure that testers are kept fully up to date with the latest information on new technology and testing procedures. They can also pick up tips on best practice both from the trainer and other testers.

Also, although the enclosed DVD covers common omissions and errors relating to other vehicle classes, we are aware that Class 1 and 2 testers can get it wrong too!

Common mistakes include:

• not using straight edges or cords for checking wheel alignment – especially on sidecars

• not checking the fuel cap seal

• incorrectly calculating brake efficiency on bikes with link brakes – for example, the results from both front wheels of the MP3 must be added together to calculate the efficiency

• forgetting that mopeds do not need to comply with the 1mm tread depth requirement (they only need visible tread).

Finally, if you have not yet been invited to a refresher

course, it is because you are not yet due to attend one. However, if you know you’re due for a refresh within the next

six months and would like first pick of a date that best suits your business needs, you can download and complete your training application form at www.vosa.gov.uk/mot-training-forms.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 7

FEATURE

You’re never too clever to learn! You may be surprised to learn that VOSA isn’t perfect! Most of our work is carried out by people, not machines – and people make mistakes. What is important is that we learn not to make the same mistake twice.

‘The man who never made a mistake never made anything’, so the saying goes. But to learn from our mistakes, we need to recognise when we’ve made them. So firstly we need to know about them. Any customer who believes that we’ve got something wrong should tell us as soon as possible. That way we can put things right quickly and minimise the effects of any error. So tell us when we’re wrong – please! Let’s look at an example.

For years we have produced volumes of internal instructions to tell our staff how to do their jobs – like a Haynes Manual for VOSA staff. These are our Operating Instructions – or OIs for short. To be honest, we never thought that anyone other than ourselves would be interested in them. If we were asked for copies we’d resolutely but politely decline. Then the Freedom of Information Act came along, so people who asked for our OIs were given a copy.

During the last redraft of the MOT OIs, your representatives asked to be involved in the rewrite. Initially we were sceptical but we went ahead and invited them along. The result was very interesting! You managed to point out things that we had missed. Some of the language we had grown used to could be interpreted as presumptive of guilt on your part. The wording of our MOT ‘caution’ was described by one correspondent as the best laxative a tester would ever get! So we changed the MOT OIs and ended up with something far more

objective and much fairer: in short, VOSA learned and changed.

A further example is the MOT consultant who protested to VOSA HQ that one of our area offices continued to make so many simple errors that he was, frankly, getting tired of pointing them out! He wanted to focus on the meat of the cases he had, rather than all the trivia that he was duty-bound to mention. This consultant supplied some good examples to us, which we gave to the Area Manager. Within days the feedback was acted upon and measures put in place to avoid similar errors in future.

VOSA is only too keen to improve and learn from our mistakes – so please let us know where we’re going wrong. You will not end up being targeted. We strive to be right all the time but we all know

that 100% perfection is impossible to achieve. We genuinely try, but need you to point out where we’ve screwed up and where we can make improvements. Don’t be shy – tell us!

You can talk to VOSA:

• in person at your local area office

• through our website at www.vosa.gov.uk/ contact-us

• by email to [email protected]

• by post to VOSA Contact Centre, Ellipse, Padley Road, Swansea SA1 8AN

• by phoning 0300 123 9000.

8 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

FEATURE

MOT data at your fingertips

Looking for information on MOT failure trends and statistics? Want to identify maintenance issues or component faults? VOSA has placed MOT test data on the internet for your business information. But what’s the bottom line?

In 2009, VOSA lifted extracts of raw data from the MOT Comp system and – after making sure that the information could not be used to draw out personal details – made it publicly available at www.data.gov.uk.

A search under ‘MOT’ on that website brings up four areas of information:

Active vehicle testing stations in Great Britain This allows people using the website to find testing stations in their area based on town, postcode and class of vehicle tested. This information is updated every three months directly from the VTS contact details maintained on MOT Comp – which is to say that it’s taken directly from the data input by you or your AE. You can

see why, therefore, it’s important to keep these details up to date (if you needed a reason other than having your copy of Matters of Testing sent to that address!).

MOT non-compliance estimates 2007/08 The title might sound a bit wishy-washy but this link takes the reader through to a page on the Department for Transport website that summarises its Transport Statistics Bulletin (the full document is available to download from the same page).

Class 4 MOT results by make and model 2007 VOSA has provided in spreadsheet format the raw data for Class 4 vehicle tests in the year 2007. This covers all Class 4 vehicles, not just cars – researchers should be aware that Class 4 includes goods vehicles up to 3,000kg, and that the data will not differentiate between a Ford Escort car and a Ford Escort van, for example. A full breakdown of vehicles tested as Class 4 can be found in Section A of the MOT Testing Guide at www.vosa.gov.uk/ manuals-and-guides.

You can use this data to:

• calculate average mileage by make and model

• calculate failure trends and statistics

• analyse the first MOT determined by regulation and mileage

• identify maintenance issues or component faults

• list Reasons for Rejection considered as dangerous.

Sadly, quite a lot of money had to be spent on cleansing this data after some testers used the free text boxes to insert some insulting and abusive comments. Because these testers are logged on to the system when they type these comments in, it’s not difficult to find out exactly who they are (d’oh!). It’s not big, it’s not clever and it’s not cheap – the going rate is around £3,000 per F-word (good job Gordon Ramsay’s not a tester). Next time, we’ll forward the bill along to them instead.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 9

FEATURE

Anonymised MOT tests and results Rather excitingly (if you’re into this kind of thing) VOSA has also provided a complete listing of every valid MOT test that has taken place since MOT Comp went live (launched in mid-2005, with take-up completed in April 2006) to 31 March 2010 – making over 150 million test results publicly available...

… just imagine what you could do with data like this: you can identify which parts of the country lack MOT testing stations dealing with different classes of vehicle. You can find out what repairs are conducted most often for a PRS, or for what parts vehicles are most often failed. You can look at these statistics as a national figure or break them down by region. The possibilities are endless.

We anticipate that the dataset will be of massive use to both trade and industry – examiners, testers, service and repair companies, trade associations, vehicle owners, fleet managers, manufacturers, dealers and sales offices – and even journalists – all over the country.

The newly available information includes test date, test type, vehicle class, make, model, mileage, colour, fuel, date of first use and cylinder capacity.

Test results are listed as pass, fail or PRS (pass after rectification at station) and will include a more detailed list of reasons for rejection and advisory notices.

VOSA has also provided the alpha part of the relevant testing station’s postcode.

Size is important But it’s big – you’ll be looking at circa 2.5 gigabytes of compressed data, which translates to about 18–20 gigabytes of uncompressed data in comma-separated value (CSV) type format – and readers will require a certain level of technical computing knowledge to fully exploit the information that the spreadsheet contains.

Understanding the data To help people to access the information and understand what it means, what limitations there are and how best to manipulate it, VOSA has also provided a short guide to using the data, which is available on the same website.

We want to know if you access the data and whether or not you find the information useful from a business perspective.

Please email us at [email protected] using the subject ‘MOT data release’ to send us your opinion.

SPOTLIGHT�

Spotlight on… MOT Comp housekeeping

It is the responsibility of all AEs to make sure that the equipment used in their testing stations is logged accurately on to their VTS Device.

When MOT Comp was originally installed over five years ago, VOSA provided a default for AEs to use if their brand of equipment was not yet available on the system. It was expected that AEs would update the VTS Device at their earliest convenience. However, we were completely flabbergasted to see that after five years there are almost 16,000 pieces of kit at testing stations across the country with active VOSA default equipment.

Equipment type Volume

VOSA Beam Tester 1,970

VOSA Brakes Decel 1,419

VOSA Brakes Plate 53

VOSA Brakes Pull 45

VOSA Brakes Roller 1,508

VOSA DSM 2,151

VOSA EGA 1996 3,517

VOSA EGA Pre 1996 301

VOSA Tyre Depth 4,901

Total 15,865

Special Notice 9-2010 recently informed you of changes to the requirements to record tread depth gauge accuracy checks and calibration of all VOSA equipment on the VTS Device.

VOSA default equipment should only be used if your approved equipment does not appear on the system. Using VOSA default equipment on the system means that you will not receive equipment recalibration reminders.

You can check what equipment is recorded by requesting a test equipment history from MOT Comp – see Section 10.Q of the VTS Device User Guide. More advice on how to add or replace equipment can be found in Section 10.P.

If you only have VOSA default equipment on your history, you must add your own specific equipment before you remove the VOSA default. If you remove the VOSA default before the correct equipment is recorded you may find that you are unable to test. Under these circumstances only your local VOSA area office will be able to reinstall VOSA default equipment.

To correctly update your equipment on the VTS Device:

•�first add the correct manufacturer’s details and calibration date of your equipment

•�request another test equipment history (which will run overnight)

•�once you are satisfied that the history shows the correct equipment, remove the VOSA equipment.

If your test equipment history shows a mixture of VOSA default equipment and specific equipment, for example a VOSA roller brake tester (RBT) and a calibrated Bradbury RBT, make sure that the calibration date of the Bradbury RBT is current and then remove the VOSA RBT.

Although recording some equipment – such as wheel play detectors – is optional, it is best practice to add the maintenance date to be sure that you will receive reminders for all the equipment you use.

The VTS Device User Guide can be accessed from your VTS Device by inserting your smart card and then selecting ‘Index’ from the top left-hand corner. Alternatively you can find it online at www.mot. vosa.gov.uk/manuals as Appendix 10 to the MOT Testing Guide.

10 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

YOU TELL US

Horror StoryA tale of torment

On the rebound David Shaw of Littlehampton Service Centre (no prizes for guessing where that is) spotted this. It’s the top mount for the spring and upper arm on the front of an XJR-S. We’ve also seen a video clip of the suspension whilst the vehicle was being rocked and it’s quite frightening how much movement there was. The top half looked to have completely separated and was floating about, and you have to wonder what the handling was like – especially when cornering.

This damage looks fairly obvious here but what was it like at the previous test? It might have been corroded but not severely enough to fail – which is why you must follow the procedures in the Inspection Manual, look in all the nooks and crannies and use the inspection lamp. If there are doubts or concerns, then pass and advise.

Caught in a bind Finally, this is from Steve Moth of John Dandy Motors Ltd in Gloucester. The picture quality is not brilliant, as it was taken on a mobile phone, but you can see some gold colouring around the disc. Ring any bells? Yep, good ol’ copper grease! Seems the owner had a binding front brake on his vehicle and remedied the situation by coating the disc liberally with the stuff. As Steve says, ‘The mind boggles!’

Have you got a horror story to tell? Send your photos and ghastly tales to the postal address at the front of the magazine or by email to [email protected] with the subject ‘Horror Story’.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 11

FEATURE

AE guilty of faking MOT tests

Last summer an AE was found guilty on eight counts of issuing MOT certificates with intent to deceive. The jury’s unanimous verdicts on all eight counts were handed down at Preston Crown Court on 29 June 2010, following a comprehensive investigation by VOSA using sophisticated surveillance techniques.

Mr Noor Hussain ran and tested at Altham MOT Centre in Accrington, Lancashire. One vehicle was not

seen on the premises at any time when it was logged on to MOT Comp for test. A further seven vehicles were seen to be in the test bay for between only 7 and 11 minutes, despite being logged on to MOT Comp for much longer.

For two weeks, evidence from VOSA officials and others was presented to the jury. The court was also told that over a four-month period a total of 2,463 vehicles were tested at Mr Hussain’s garage, yet none had failed. The average Class 4 MOT test failure rate in Britain during that period was 32%.

On 2 November 2010 His Honour Judge Knowles QC sentenced Noor Hussain to six months’ imprisonment and awarded VOSA costs of £60,000.

The vast majority of Britain’s MOT test stations are honest and

can be reassured that, once VOSA becomes aware of garages acting

illegally, all appropriate resources are devoted to securing the evidence not only from our own observations, but also from MOT Comp and from some very sophisticated surveillance techniques available to us.

Noor Hussain has been proven to have cheated and defrauded motorists, compromising road safety in the process. The sentence imposed upon him should serve as a deterrent to others who may be contemplating a similar fraud.

12 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

The knowledge

HOT TIPS

Although recent changes to the Inspection Manual seem to be fairly well understood, there are some issues that appear to cause problems. So we thought we’d straighten a few things out for you here.�

In the last couple of months, one of our technical standards engineers sat in on part of an MOT refresher course to get a real-life feel for the problems that testers are facing. Some of the issues raised resulted from recent modifications to the Inspection Manual – although these were generally fairly well received, there were a few issues that seemed to cause problems.

Evidence of tyre contact You need to demonstrate that the tyre is fouling another component or causing damage before you can fail the vehicle. Evidence of contact itself – such as marks on the inner edge of the tyre and corresponding marks on the inner wing panel – is not a reason for failure. When you perform your lock-to-lock check, you are checking whether the movement of the wheel or tyre is impeded or is impeding the movement of another component, such as a steering arm/rod. Remember, there is already information in Vehicle Specific Information (VSI) for Volvo and Hyundai regarding tyre contact.

Narrow track vehicles Many of you seem to think that you still have to refuse to test a quad that is too narrow to fit on your lift or pit. Special Notice 2-2006, which is still part of the 2008 consolidation, informs you that these vehicles can be tested on the floor – using a jack, for instance – provided, of course, that you are still able to perform the brake and headlamp aim tests correctly.

Quad front plates Whilst everyone knows that all vehicles require a rear number plate, there appears to be some confusion as to whether a quad requires a front one. The simple answer is yes – because it is a four-wheeled vehicle, even if it has a handle bar and fork arrangement. Only a three-wheeled vehicle with a motorcycle-derived front end is exempt from the requirements.

Watch this space for more information on recent changes to the Inspection Manual. View the MOT Inspection Manual online at www.vosa.gov.uk/manuals-and-guides.

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 13

TT-BRAKE-BRAKE

60-second INTERVIEW MikeWestermanisVOSA’s MOTtrainingmanager coveringthewholeoftheUK.

How long have you been working for VOSA? I joined in March 1985 as a Vehicle Examiner (VE) in Inverness, where I later became station manager. Then I moved to Livingston as a technical trainer, before becoming a training manager.

What made you take the step from management to training? Ever since I went to college I wanted to be a college lecturer but for different reasons I ended up as a VE instead. When the opportunity came up to join Training Services in 1995 I jumped at the chance. When I joined, there were 16 trainers covering the whole of VOSA’s MOT, commercial and internal training.

What’s the best part of the job? Definitely the travel. I’ve been all over the UK and the European mainland, and spent three weeks in Jordan in the Middle East. When I arrived in Jordan to support the formation of an inspection scheme for all vehicles, all they had was a checklist on a side of A4 — my first job was to write a draft manual before I could even start the training! But during my stay, I managed to visit the incredible buildings at Petra that were carved into the slopes of Mount Hor — they were magnificent.

And the worst? Traffic jams.

How do you unwind at the end of the day? Maintain and polish my old red BMW. I’ve had it for 24 years now.

DVDreview Where did it all go wrong…? This time we decided to do things a little differently – in our latest motion picture we take you through a test (of sorts!) with the roles reversed. Our intrepid presenter, Robert, is in the hot seat, demonstrating a test for the vigilant VOSA trainer, Brian Gray.

Brian stops the test at areas of common misunderstanding, to explain what should be taking place. We all make mistakes sometimes – that’s why we collected together the most regularly observed problems and demonstrate the correct methods.

From suspension checks to roller brake tests, the most often misunderstood parts of the MOT test – that is to say, the parts you ask about most – are covered in this DVD. Share the film with your testing colleagues – the items demonstrated may settle some longstanding disputes!

If you’d like to suggest a topic for future films, email mattersoftesting@ vosa.gov.uk with the subject ‘MOT Matters DVD’, or send a postcard to the Editor at the address at the front of this magazine.

Onthejob At a recent MOT refresher course, the trainer arrived early so that he could greet the delegates on arrival, only to find that one of the candidates wasn’t on the register. This wasn’t unusual, as Training Services sometimes include a last-minute booking if they have received a cancellation. The trainer phoned the training administrator to find out whether this was the case. However,

the answer came back that this gentleman was not booked onto the course.

The trainer asked whether the delegate had a call-up letter or printout. ‘Yes, I printed it out,’ he replied. ‘I’ll get it from the car.’

On the delegate’s return, the trainer read through the letter, which gave a training date six weeks earlier!

When the trainer pointed this out, the delegate argued, ‘No, it says I must attend within six months of that date, so I came today!’

Well, that isn’t quite what the instruction means, but luckily there was space on the course that day, so the delegate stayed.

14 | MOT computerisation enquiries can now be made through the VOSA service desk: 0845 071 1973

T-BRAKET-BRAKE

Competition Can you find the 15 training-related words on this grid? Send your answers, along with your name, address and VTS number, to us by 25 February 2011 at Competition, Matters of Testing, VOSA, Berkeley House, Croydon Street, Bristol BS5 0DA.

ADVISE GROW SKILLS

ASSESS GUIDE STUDENT

DEVELOP IMPROVE TEACH

DISCUSS KNOWLEDGE TEST

EDUCATE LEARN TRAIN

The first correct entry drawn will win £20 of vouchers that can be used at most high street stores.

E G D E L W O N K U

D H E A D V I S E S

U C V W N M H D T S

C A E O P R I A S O

A E L R S U A U K K

T T O G G S C E I C

E V P E T S E T L E

E T R A I N E S L T

S T U D E N T D S N

G E U K W G C C I A

You’vewon!

The winner of last issue’s competition is Andy Lauton of HiQ garage in Deal, Kent. Congratulations Andy — the vouchers are winging their way to you!

MOT test enquiries can be made through our contact centre: 0300 123 9000 Matters of Testing | 15

VTS Council reps Your VTS Council representative is your voice to VOSA. Because reps are consulted on the future of the MOT test, they are up to date with any changes that may be proposed.

If you have an issue or concern that you’d like to see taken up with VOSA, contact your local VTS rep and ask them to raise it at the next Council meeting.

SCOTLAND – Bridge of Allan

William McLellan [email protected]

Stuart Kinghorn [email protected]

Tom Arnott [email protected]

James Seath [email protected]

Jim King [email protected]

Malcolm Evans [email protected]

Elliott Kilday [email protected]

Jim Holden [email protected]

Ian Walker [email protected]

Robert Smith enquiries@bonjedwardgarage. co.uk

Dawn and Mike Leonard [email protected]

John Campbell [email protected]

Barry McGowan [email protected]

Gary Hughes [email protected]

Jim Reape [email protected]

Fred Henderson [email protected]

EAST MIDLANDS – Cambridge

John Tarbox [email protected]

Bruce McFarlane [email protected]

John Holland [email protected]

Chris Larkin [email protected]

Brian Bradshaw 01604 702991

Richard Frood [email protected]

NORTH – Leeds

Glynne Lever [email protected]

John Hall [email protected]

Jim Belt [email protected]

Barry Chandler [email protected]

Peter Mitchell [email protected]

Esmond Kielty [email protected]

Richard Mattock mattockmotors@ calaisstreet.fsnet.co.uk

David P. Walters [email protected]

Kim Raw 0113 284 9904

David Taylor [email protected]

Ian Kerr [email protected]

Derek Hemmingway [email protected]

Kirk Armitage [email protected]

WEST MIDLANDS – Birmingham

David Meredith [email protected]

Andrew Stilgoe [email protected]

Simon Baughan [email protected]

Martyn Langbridge martyn@cheltandglosautocentre. co.uk

Keith Barlow c/o richardfraser@ fmscarandtruck.co.uk

Nick Tammaro [email protected]

Jerry Munslow [email protected]

Phil Jackson [email protected]

Mahendra Kotecha 07973 814867

WALES – Swansea

R. Babbage 029 2075 2663

Colin Allen [email protected]

D. Roberts [email protected]

Peter Williams [email protected]

Martin Lilygreen [email protected]

Dave Sherwood [email protected]

Paul Thomas [email protected]

Neil Jones 01443 835905

Richard John [email protected]

SOUTH WEST – Exeter

Keith Redman [email protected]

John Medland [email protected]

Andy Reynolds [email protected]

Jerry Nicoll [email protected]

Dick Williams [email protected]

Wayne Caff [email protected]

Andrew MacCreadie [email protected]

Steve Ingarfill [email protected]

Dominic Beardmore [email protected]

Gary Hooper 01395 442775

Richard Cuff 01443 402389

SOUTH EAST – Gatwick

Martin Herbert [email protected]

Alex Betts [email protected]

Martin Smith [email protected]

Neil Osman [email protected]

Richard Strong [email protected]

Colin Johnson [email protected]

Thomas Williams [email protected]

Peter Miles [email protected]

Lyn Softley [email protected]

Brian Durrant [email protected]

John Ball [email protected]

Paul Michell [email protected]

Richard Field [email protected]