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What MOT repairs cost

Typical UK price brackets for the 83 most common MOT failures, grouped by the section the tester records them under. 83 have a price estimate; 69% are a DIY or independent-garage job. Every figure is an estimate from parts prices, not a quote — how the brackets are built.

Cheapest bracket
£3–£12
Stop lamp not working
Dearest bracket
£200–£700
Engine oil leaking excessively
£50 or less
29 of 83
priced items, whole job
Do-it-yourself
69%
of the 83 items

Calculate my fail sheet → which cars cost least per test

What the price list shows

Most MOT repairs are small. Of the 83 failure items priced here, 29 cost £50 or less for the whole job, and the commonest failures are the cheapest to put right — the cheapest bracket on this page is £3–£12 for stop lamp not working, while the dearest is engine oil leaking excessively, at £200–£700. 69% of the list is a DIY or independent-garage job — the cases where the labour of getting at the part costs more than the part itself are the exceptions, not the rule.

Every bracket on this page is an estimate from UK parts prices, not a quote: the fitted range is between a pattern part fitted by an independent garage and a main-dealer job with a premium part. The 0 items with no bracket are recorded on MOT failure sheets so rarely that no price estimate survives the survey's sample gate — see how the brackets are built for the exact rules.

None of these figures include the MOT test itself. The maximum fee for a car MOT is £54.85, and a fail costs nothing extra beyond the repair: leave the car for repair at the same test station and the partial retest is free if you return within 10 working days, or for a listed set of items before the end of the next working day. The after-a-fail guide sets out those retest rules in full, and the calculator adds up a real fail sheet so you can see the total before you book anything in.

Repair price list

Grouped by the section the tester records it under, biggest group first. 83 items. Each bracket is a typical fitted price; the 10 most common items also show what the part alone costs, which is the figure you need at a parts counter.

The price column is our estimate of typical UK supply, including fitting where the job is not a DIY one
Failure item Typical cost DIY? Recorded in
Suspension 22 items · 34.5% of recorded failures
Suspension pin or bush excessively worn £40–£150 part £35–£75 Garage 8.0%
Shock absorber leaking £30–£75 part £40–£65 Yes 3.9%
Coil spring corroded £25–£65 part £30–£50 Yes 3.6%
Ball joint excessively worn £18–£45 Yes 3.1%
Sub-frame corroded £180–£450 Garage 2.4%
Coil spring fractured or broken £25–£65 Yes 2.0%
Linkage ball joint excessively worn £18–£45 Yes 1.8%
Suspension arm corroded £35–£85 Yes 1.4%
Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated £18–£45 Yes 1.3%
Component mounting: prescribed area excessively corroded £180–£450 Garage 1.1%
Ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt £18–£45 Yes 0.7%
Wheel bearings rough when rotated £20–£55 Yes 0.6%
Linkage ball joint dust cover insecure £18–£45 Yes 0.6%
Swivel pin or bush excessively worn £40–£150 Garage 0.6%
Wheel bearings has excessive play £20–£55 Yes 0.6%
Linkage ball joint dust cover deteriorated £18–£45 Yes 0.6%
Linkage pin or bush excessively worn £40–£150 Garage 0.5%
Shock absorbers has an excessively worn bush £30–£75 Yes 0.5%
Shock absorber has no damping £30–£75 Yes 0.4%
Shock absorbers damaged to the extent that it does not function £30–£75 Yes 0.3%
Sub-frame mounting corroded £180–£450 Garage 0.3%
Suspension component corroded £180–£450 Garage 0.3%
Tyres 7 items · 33.4% of recorded failures
Tread depth below 1.6 mm £45–£95 part £55–£85 Yes 17.4%
Tyre has a tear £45–£95 part £55–£85 Yes 9.2%
Tyre cut too deep £45–£95 Yes 2.5%
Tread pattern not visible £45–£95 Yes 2.3%
Tyre has a bulge £45–£95 Yes 0.9%
Tyre cords exposed £45–£95 Yes 0.8%
TPMS warning light on £45–£95 Yes 0.3%
Brakes 12 items · 32.8% of recorded failures
Brake discs seriously weakened £45–£110 part £60–£90 Yes 9.4%
Brake pads under 1.5 mm £18–£45 part £25–£40 Yes 8.6%
Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded £80–£180 part £25–£55 Garage 4.6%
Brake discs worn £45–£110 Yes 2.9%
Service brake binding £60–£150 Garage 2.5%
Service brake fluctuating £60–£150 Garage 1.0%
Brake hose ferrule corroded £25–£70 Yes 1.0%
Brake efficiency below requirements £45–£110 Yes 0.9%
Service brake imbalance across an axle £45–£110 Yes 0.7%
Parking brake ineffective on one side £60–£150 Garage 0.4%
Flexible brake hoses excessively deteriorated £25–£70 Yes 0.4%
ABS warning lamp on £3–£15 Yes 0.3%
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 16 items · 16.8% of recorded failures
Registration plate lamp inoperative (multiple lamps) £5–£20 part £6–£18 Yes 3.2%
Position lamp not working £5–£25 Yes 2.1%
Stop lamp not working £3–£12 Yes 1.6%
Indicator incorrect colour £3–£12 Yes 1.3%
Headlamp not working £5–£25 Yes 1.2%
Headlamp aim incorrect £30–£80 Garage 1.1%
Headlamp aim too low £30–£80 Garage 1.0%
Headlamp has a product on the lens so that the light output is severely reduced £5–£25 Yes 0.9%
Registration plate lamp inoperative (single lamp) £5–£20 Yes 0.9%
Headlamp lens slightly defective £5–£25 Yes 0.9%
Headlamp aim too high £30–£80 Garage 0.7%
Stop lamp partly not working £3–£12 Yes 0.4%
Rear fog lamp not working £3–£15 Yes 0.4%
Side repeaters not working £5–£25 Yes 0.3%
Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier £60–£140 Yes 0.3%
Position lamp partly not working £5–£25 Yes 0.3%
Noise, emissions and leaks 5 items · 8.1% of recorded failures
Engine oil leaking excessively £200–£700 part £25–£60 Garage 5.4%
Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative £3–£12 Yes 1.2%
Transmission oil leaks leaking excessively from transmission £200–£700 Garage 0.7%
Lambda reading outside limits £60–£250 Garage 0.5%
Emissions not tested unable to be completed £60–£250 Garage 0.3%
Visibility 6 items · 7.7% of recorded failures
Windscreen damaged £80–£200 Garage 2.6%
Wiper does not clear the windscreen £8–£22 Yes 1.7%
Washer provides insufficient liquid £5–£15 Yes 1.2%
Wipers blade defective £8–£22 Yes 1.1%
Washers not working £5–£15 Yes 0.7%
Mirrors slightly damaged £3–£15 Yes 0.4%
Body, chassis, structure 6 items · 7.6% of recorded failures
Exhaust system leaking £45–£120 Garage 2.8%
CV boot severely deteriorated £80–£250 Garage 1.5%
CV boot split or insecure £80–£250 Garage 1.2%
Exhaust system insecure £45–£120 Garage 1.1%
Integral structure corroded £180–£450 Garage 0.6%
Chassis corroded £180–£450 Garage 0.5%
Non-component advisories 4 items · 6.1% of recorded failures
Child seat fitted, preventing full inspection £20–£80 Yes 2.0%
Nail in tyre £45–£95 Yes 1.8%
Play in steering rack inner joint £120–£300 Garage 1.6%
Items removed from driver's view £20–£80 Yes 0.7%
Identification of the vehicle 1 items · 2.8% of recorded failures
Registration plate inscription illegible £20–£80 Yes 2.8%
Steering 2 items · 2.7% of recorded failures
Track rod end excessive play £18–£45 Yes 2.0%
Track rod end dust cover damaged £18–£45 Yes 0.7%
Road Wheels 1 items · 1.0% of recorded failures
Wheel badly distorted £20–£55 Yes 1.0%
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems 1 items · 0.4% of recorded failures
SRS warning lamp indicates a fault £3–£12 Yes 0.4%

Why these numbers are ranges

A quote is a promise; these are estimates. The same coil spring costs different amounts on a Corsa and a Range Rover, dealer labour is not independent-garage labour, and prices move. We publish the bracket so you can budget and sanity-check a quote, not so you can hold a garage to it.

What is included: the part, and fitting where the job is not realistically DIY. What is not included: diagnostics, the retest fee, and anything the tester recorded that cannot be mapped to a part (0 of the items here have no honest bracket, and they show “varies” rather than a guess).

The volume column is the part almost nobody else shows: how often the item is recorded across 2023–2025 of DVSA tests. A cheap failure that happens constantly costs more over five years than an expensive one that never does.

All MOT failures, ranked → Car failed? What to do next →