Enter a registration and you will see whether the bike has a valid MOT, when it runs out, and every test it has ever had, with the mileage, the advisories and the failure items in full.
Free, a couple of seconds, no account. The same test data sits on the government's own service. What this page adds is the mileage trail beside it, an explanation of what the tester's wording means, and the parts of the picture an MOT record cannot cover at all.
A motorbike MOT is not a smaller version of a car MOT either. The classes are different, the failure items are different, and the first test falls due at a point that catches out most new owners. Below the lookup is what the test actually covers on a bike, what a pass does not tell you, and how to find a centre that will test your machine.
The rules, briefly
A bike needs its first MOT at three years old. Not one year, not at first registration. Three years from the date it was first registered, then annually after that.
There are two test classes, split at 200cc. Class 1 covers machines up to 200cc, Class 2 covers everything above. They are not the same test, and not every centre is approved for both.
You can test early without losing time. A bike can be tested up to a month minus a day before the current certificate expires and keep the same anniversary date. Test earlier than that and you lose the remainder.
Bikes over 40 years old are usually exempt. The exemption rolls forward each year and applies where the machine has not been substantially altered. Exempt does not mean it can be unroadworthy, and plenty of owners test anyway for their own reassurance.
Riding without a valid MOT is an offence except when travelling to a pre-booked test or to a garage for repairs after a failure.
What gets tested
Broadly: lights and reflectors, steering, suspension, wheels and tyres, brakes, frame condition, exhaust and noise, fuel system, seat, footrests, handlebars and levers, drive chain or belt, horn, registration plate, speedometer on most machines, and the sidecar if one is fitted.
Two items on that list surprise people.
The frame number. It must be present and legible. A frame number that has corroded away, been painted over or become unreadable is a failure in its own right, regardless of the state of the rest of the bike.
The registration plate. Bikes fail on illegal plates far more often than cars do. Wrong character size, non-standard fonts, incorrect spacing, tinted covers and plates displayed on one line where two are required all count. It is one of the easiest failures to avoid and one of the most common to collect.
What a pass does not tell you
Worth being clear about, because a valid MOT reassures buyers far more than it should.
It is a snapshot, not a health check. The certificate says the bike met the minimum legal standard on the morning it was tested. It says nothing about the following afternoon.
Minimum standard is a low bar. Brake pads at the legal limit pass. Tyres at 1mm pass. A chain at the end of its adjustment range passes. A bike can leave with a fresh certificate and a four-figure list of things that need doing before it is good.
Large parts of the machine are never examined. The engine internals, the gearbox, the clutch, the transmission on a scooter, the state of the oil, the condition of the wiring behind the bodywork. None of it forms part of the test.
Nothing about history is checked. The tester does not know or care whether the bike has finance owing on it, has been recorded as stolen, or carries a write-off marker. Those sit on entirely separate registers.
A fresh MOT on a bike for sale is worth reading carefully. Twelve months on the ticket is valuable, but a certificate dated the week the advert went up tells you the seller wanted one, not that the bike is sound. Read the advisories on it, because that is where the tester wrote down what they saw.
The sensible position is that an MOT record is one of three things you check, alongside a proper physical inspection and the bike's history. None of the three substitutes for the other two.
Why the MOT record matters when you are buying
For a buyer, the MOT history is the single most useful free document about a used bike, and most people skim it when they should be reading it.
Advisories tell you how the bike has been treated. An advisory is the tester noting something that is not yet a failure. What matters is what happened next. A corrosion advisory that appears once and then disappears means somebody dealt with it. The same advisory carried forward across four consecutive tests means it was noted, ignored, and has been quietly getting worse for four years.
The wording is specific and worth reading properly. "Slight play in steering head bearings" and "brake disc worn, close to the legal limit" describe different sizes of problem and different bills.
Mileage is recorded at every test. That gives you a timestamped trail that the clock on the bike cannot argue with.
Gaps have meanings. A missing year on a bike that was declared SORN over a winter is entirely normal. A missing year on a bike advertised as ridden all season is a question.
What fails, and what to do about it
Bikes collect their failures in fairly predictable places: lighting and signalling, brakes, tyres, steering and suspension, drive chain condition, and the registration plate. Corrosion features heavily on anything that has lived outside.
If a bike fails, you can leave it at the centre for repair, or ride it away to a pre-booked repair appointment. Riding it home to a driveway to fix it yourself is not covered by that exemption unless there is a booked repair at the other end.
A retest within ten working days at the same centre is usually free or reduced, depending on what was replaced and whether the bike left the premises. Ask before you leave.
Finding a centre that will test your bike
This is the part people discover too late, and it is specific to bikes.
Most MOT stations cannot test a motorbike. Bike testing needs different equipment and separate approval, so the garage that does your car very probably cannot touch your bike. Bike-approved stations are a minority of the total, and outside towns the nearest one can be a real distance away.
Approval is by class, not just by bike. A station approved for Class 2 will usually also do Class 1, but not always, and the reverse holds too. If you ride a 125 it is worth asking specifically rather than assuming a bike-approved garage covers you.
This is why you ring before you ride. If your certificate has expired, the only legal journey you can make is to a pre-booked test. Turning up somewhere that cannot test your class leaves you with a bike you cannot legally ride home. Book first, confirm the class, then travel.
Bike dealers are the reliable fallback. A franchised or independent motorcycle dealer will almost always be approved for what they sell. Independent bike specialists tend to be better value than franchised dealers and often better at telling you what they found.
Book earlier in the season than feels necessary. Bike test slots thin out sharply in March and April, when the whole country decides at once that the riding season has started. A certificate expiring in spring is worth booking in February.
Scooters, mopeds and small machines
The same three-year rule applies. A 50cc moped needs an MOT at three years old exactly as a litre bike does, and it sits in Class 1 rather than Class 2.
What differs is the wear pattern rather than the rules. Scooters live outdoors, do their miles in traffic, and collect corrosion, bodywork damage and drivetrain wear in places a geared bike does not.
FAQs
Is a motorbike MOT check free?
Checking the history is, on this page and on the government's own service. Booking and taking the test is not.
How much does a motorbike MOT cost?
The fee cap is the same for every solo bike whatever the class, at £29.65, and it has been frozen there since 2010. A sidecar outfit is capped a little higher at £37.80. Bike specialists tend to charge at or near the cap, because far fewer garages test bikes than test cars.
Can I ride my bike if the MOT has expired?
Only to a pre-booked MOT appointment, or to a garage for repairs after a failure. Otherwise no, and your insurance may be affected as well.
Do I need an MOT on a brand new bike?
Not until it is three years old. Which also means a bike younger than that has no independent test record, so there is no mileage trail to check it against.
Where can I get a motorbike MOT near me?
Only at a station approved for motorcycle testing, and specifically for your class. Most MOT garages are car-only, so ring and confirm before you travel, particularly if your certificate has expired and the trip has to be a pre-booked appointment. Motorcycle dealers and independent bike specialists are the reliable options.