Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment: not working
This one item accounted for 0.5% of every MOT test carried out in Great Britain, and it is among the commonest faults on 130 different model-and-year combinations. Here is where it clusters, and what it looks like on a car you are standing in front of.
How to spot it before you buy
With the seller's help, test every exterior light — head, brake, indicators, reversing, fogs
Failed bulbs fail the MOT; LED/xenon units can be very expensive on premium cars. Needs the key and someone working the switches — save it for when the seller joins you.
The models it hits hardest
Ranked by how often the fault came up as a share of that model's own tests, not by raw count — a fault in 8% of a small model's tests says more about that model than one in 3% of the Fiesta's. A linked row has a page of its own.
| Model | Years | Share of its tests |
|---|---|---|
| Renault Grand Scenic | 2010–2013 | 7.4% |
| Citroen Grand C4 Picasso | 2010–2013 | 7.1% |
| Peugeot 5008 | 2010–2013 | 6.8% |
| Peugeot 5008 | 2014–2017 | 6.1% |
| Peugeot 3008 | 2010–2013 | 6% |
| Citroen Berlingo | 2010–2013 | 6% |
| Ford Transit | 2010–2013 | 5.9% |
| Renault Megane | 2010–2013 | 5.6% |
| Peugeot Partner | 2010–2013 | 5.5% |
| Renault Kangoo | 2010–2013 | 5.5% |
| Vauxhall Antara | 2010–2013 | 5.4% |
| Mercedes-Benz Citan | 2018–2021 | 5.2% |
| Citroen Berlingo | 2014–2017 | 5% |
| Renault Scenic | 2010–2013 | 5% |
| Vauxhall Antara | 2014–2017 | 5% |
| Ford Transit Connect | 2010–2013 | 4.9% |
| Ford Transit Courier | 2014–2017 | 4.9% |
| Ford B-MAX | 2010–2013 | 4.7% |
| Citroen Dispatch | 2010–2013 | 4.7% |
| Renault Grand Scenic | 2014–2017 | 4.7% |
Showing the worst 20 of 130 affected model-and-year combinations. The full dataset is downloadable below.
Which manufacturers it clusters on
Pooled across each make's whole range, so this is a fact about the brand rather than about one of its models. Makes with at least 50,000 tests.
Free · no account, no card
See whether the car you're looking at has this on record
Type the registration and you get that car's own MOT history — every advisory and every failure, including whether this one has already come up.
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023. Class 4 standard tests only. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.