Took my car for its 1st MOT today and it failed on the brakes and the headlights. I was shocked as we only had new brakes (all of them!) 5 weeks ago and before they could even offer me a quote I went off on one - at which point they said we should go back to the garage that fitted the brakes and complain.

Went to the original garage who kept the car to check out the brakes - they returned it later saying they had taken the car to two other MOT stations that they use for doing MOTs as they don't do them themselves and put it on the rolling roads and there is nothing wrong with the brakes - they then apparently went back to the MOT testing garage we used (they are in the same street as there are several garages in one area) and asked and they got very defensive and said maybe their testing machinery was faulty.

So now we are thinking that maybe the MOT testing garage just failed it on the brakes as they assumed we would get them fixed (they couldn't have known that on a just 3yrs old car with 30K on it we would have had the whole lot fixed recently); and also we are suspicious that maybe the lights only need the levels adjusted with the dial that is inside the car?

But how to find out - I guess we can pay 50% for a partial retest at the original MOT station (but if it failed there once why wouldn't it fail again?) or pay for a complete new test somewhere else. We don't know who to trust as obviously its in the interest of the garage who originally replaced the brakes to say there is nothing wrong with them, and in the interest of the garage doing the retest to fail it again (unless we tell them they've been fixed!) - we don't want to pay for a retest if it is just going to fail again - but if it really has passed the test on other rolling roads (and our brake man was pretty convincing he said to get the MOT testing garage to let me watch the needles, can't see him suggesting that if he had any doubts it would pass).

We don't want to shell out more money needlessly - but are loathe to pay the original garage any more for MOT - especially if it should have passed in the first place. The MOT garage said if the only thing it had failed on had been the headlights then we could have paid £10 to have them adjusted there and then and the retest would have been free,but unfortunately because it had also failed on the brakes we would need to pay a partial retest fee & now that I have driven it away I think I have to at least pay the partial retest fee even if only the headlights need adusted.

We are doubly suspicious because the MOT was half-price which is why we chose this garage - now we are thinking that they can probably only afford to offer this if they are fairly certain of a lot of cars failing and needing a retest and remedial work.

If we were to get it retested somewhere else and it passes can we claim the original test fee back? or if we do take it back pay the £10 for the headlamps and it passes (without anything other than the headlamps being adjusted) should we refuse to pay the retest fee because it should never have failed on the brakes.

Is there anywhere I can get an independant view on the brakes and headlamp beams without paying for an entire MOT test?

Any advice gratefully received

Appeal the MOT.

See HERE

Pete