The MOT requirement for classic cars will officially expire to a significant extent as of 2021. As of the new year, cars older than 50 years no longer need to be inspected.
The amendment has now been fully implemented. As of January 1 of next year, the mandatory Dutch Periodic Vehicle Inspection for a car will expire when it is 50 years or older. Anyone who owns a car that entered the road on 1 January 1971 or earlier is therefore already exempt from that day. Previously, the exemption only applied to cars from before January 1, 1960. Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen explains in a press statement why this decision was taken: “Oldtimers are often in the hands of real enthusiasts. They pay a lot of attention to the maintenance of their vehicle and use it relatively little on the road. To avoid unnecessary costs for owners, they will no longer have to go to the garage for a mandatory inspection if their vehicle is 50 years old or older. ”
Earlier this year it was announced that the minister was planning this. At the time, Bovag and KNAC did not necessarily respond enthusiastically. Both organizations think that not every classic owner takes such good care of his car. De Bovag fears that some will see this as a ‘license’ to allow maintenance to be neglected and that potentially dangerous situations will arise. KNAC thinks it is a bit double and likes that people ‘are not pushed for costs and can arrange their own affairs’, but still saw the MOT as a valuable way to check whether everyone is taking sufficient care of their classic car.
The beautiful Citroën DS in the photo above also once shone in ‘In het Wild’.