DVSA Guidance
Published on April 1st the DVSA have provided a special notice to cover a number of changes;
The recording of annual training
Clarification of calibration equipment expiry, and
Low diesel smoke plate values
Of particular note is the recording of annual training and the questions that have arisen this week. Whilst by no means an exhaustive list of questions and answers, the following is intended to support the DVSA guidance and to provide clarity to the industry.
Recording of annual training
“From 1 April 2024, MOT testers must record their annual training on the MOT testing service.”
This means that;
Testers are responsible for recording their training on the MOT testing service.
You can only record your training for the current training year (1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025).
You can add and view your training on your profile page on the MOT testing service.
And applies to the following people within our industry;
all current testers
testers returning from suspensions or lapses
Battery drain following emission test
This addressed an issue on certain Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles that were seeing battery drain as a result of some MOT emission testing analysers. As a result, OBD connections - for reading engine temperature and speed measurement - shouldn’t be being using on certain models;
Land Rover Discovery
Land Rover Discovery Sport
Land Rover Evoque
Land Rover Velar (manufactured from 2018 to 2020)
Jaguar F-Pace
Jaguar XE
Jaguar XF (manufactured from 2018 to 2020)
Where these vehicles are being presented for MOT then the DVSA lists out alternative action that should be taken as follows;
You should only use the emission analysers approved dipstick oil temperature probe and speed measuring devices.
If the engine speed cannot be measured, you should use the vehicle tachometer (if fitted).
If the dipstick temperature probe cannot be used, use the temperature gauge, cooling fan cut in or hot coolant hoses to check this.
You must remove cosmetic engine covers if they can be easily unclipped.
If you do not do this it can cause drain issues on the vehicle which will not be covered under the vehicle warranty.
Low diesel smoke plate values
Finally, the DVSA noted that there are instances in which some diesel vehicles are being presented for MOT with low plate values, some of which are as low as 0.01. In these instances, there is a requirement to add 0.05 to the plate value when entering on the smoke tester to prevent incorrect failures as a result of manufacturing tolerances.
Clarification
Recording of annual training
Q: Can training providers upload the annual training information on your MTS account on your behalf?
A: The short answer is no; not at the moment. The only person that should have access to your MTS account is you. We will be incorporating a "step-by-step" guide on how to upload your annual training within our 2024/2025 Annual Training and are in talks with the DVSA on how to make this transition as simple as possible for you.
There are no circumstances under which it would be acceptable for someone other than the account holder to access an MTS Account.
Q: Would you still need to keep a paper copy of your CPD record for the year, or is the online upload going to be sufficient?
A: You need to keep the previous 5 years training logs readily available for DVSA to see - so this year’s will be on your MTS Account, and records from previous years will be in whatever format you have them currently stored. There will be no requirement to keep a paper copy of this year’s training log however some may choose to do so as well as recording it via MTS.
Q: How should the annual training be recorded?
A: A simple way to record your training - if you've done a training and assessment course such as the one that we offer here at Pro-Tech - would be to input 4 hours training with bullet points showing all topics covered in our training course and then to keep paper records of CPD as you would do normally.
Battery drain
Q: Does this apply to all models of Jaguar / Land Rover?
A: No; just those that are listed with the specific requirement as to what should be done as an alternative course of action to avoid battery drain.
Low diesel smoke plate values
Q: Do you need to apply the additional 0.05 plate value to all or just the lower value plate limits?
A: DVSA have stated that the addition of 0.05 MUST be added to ALL plate values, regardless of the original plate value to account for manufacturing tolerances. We have fed back to DVSA that this isn't clear on the Special Notice so look out for an update shortly clarifying the above information.
Q: Will I get into trouble for incorrectly entering the wrong plate value when carrying out an emissions test?
A: Incorrect manual entry of measured test values onto the MOT testing service, where overall test result remains unchanged is classed as a Level 1 Sanction - issue of an Advisory Warning Letter and be recorded as an Event on MTS. If you believe that you have made this error, please contact our team for further advice and guidance.
A full list of the updates made to the MOT Manual by DVSA can be seen HERE
Experience the difference with Pro-Tech MOT & Automotive Academy. I’d love to connect with you and talk about how we can help to support you in driving your business further.
Get in touch at info@pro-techacademy.co.uk or call our team on 01283 734427.
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