Is there a difference between Council MOT vs Private Garage MOT?

The simple is answer is No, there are no fundamental differences between getting your vehicle MOT at a council / local authority MOT Station vs a privately owned MOT Station, your vehicle must still pass the same MOT Test checklist.

However most council / local authority MOT stations won’t carry out any repairs or minor works that you require if you vehicle fails its MOT this would need to be carried out at another local garage who would charge you a Full MOT cost again if they retested as they didn’t take any fees from the original MOT test.

Are there many Council / local authority MOT stations?

Yes, there are lots of council / local authority MOT Stations located all over the UK, most local councils have there own MOT Test Stations to carry out MOT’s on their own fleet of vehicles.

Does a Council / Local Authority have the right to not test my vehicle?

By law, MOT test centres (though not taxi or Crown MOT stations) must be open to the general public, As mentioned above they generally only carry out tests and don’t do repairs (always check), there’s no incentive for mechanics to find faults that don’t exist at council / local authority MOT stations.

Where to find my nearest Council / Local Authority MOT Test Station

You can find your nearest MOT test station here, all you need to do is type in your local council name in the search box below and it will list the council / local authority MOT test station for you.