'Frustrating' MOT backlogs as test centres opening dates unconfirmed

MOT backlogs look set to continue, at least into the near future, with still no exact dates confirmed for the opening of new test centres.

Two new centres will test more than 200,000 additional vehicles per year.

Hydebank, in south Belfast, was originally due to open in 2022, then changed to 2024. Another at Mallusk, County Antrim, was scheduled for 2024 but also pushed back.

The Department for Infrastructure (DfI) has not given specific dates but said both were expected to open for vehicle testing "within the next year".

In March, Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins announced the extension of temporary exemption notices (TECs) to help manage MOT waiting times.

Kimmins said the extension was to "allow the DVA to continue to manage the increased demand for MOTs until new testing facilities at Hydebank and Mallusk are open for vehicle testing".

DUP MLA for Fermanagh and South Tyrone Deborah Erskine said the delays "have an impact upon motorists".

She said despite the minister putting in place TECs, new centres were needed.

"It's long past the time now from when they should have been opened and we need see that pretty soon," she said.

Erskine said that people were having to travel for MOT tests to get their vehicles checked, taxed and insured.

"We can't continue to have a situation of temporary exemption certificates happening in Northern Ireland," she said.

"We need to have a sustainable system going forward."

Laura Doherty from north Belfast told BBC News NI that she found it "a lot harder" to get an MOT this year.

"My car thankfully just passed second time around but it did actually take me about a month and a half before I actually got my book in date, and then a retest then," she said.

"The waiting time, it's not great, people want to be on the road as quickly as possible - and your tax and everything is running out if you don't get an MOT, so it just doesn't really weigh up."

Patricia Bennett from Newry said this year "has been the worst" for MOTs.

"I tried to book an MOT test recently for my husband's work vans, and to be honest it's months away, and then we are afraid driving around with no MOT, and then I have to go on every morning to see if there is a cancellation in Newry, but sometimes my husband ends up having to go to Lisburn or Downpatrick, just to get an MOT," Bennett said.

"My husband runs a business so he has a few vans so it's really an awful impact - and then he has to take maybe half a day off work to travel to Lisburn or Downpatrick - or sometimes Belfast to get the MOT, so it's really inconvenient."

Craig Houston said there is "too much of a backlog" with MOT tests.

"I think the backlog was never cleared, so as more cars come in to MOT the backlog is only going to get bigger, and it is going to continue to do that. It doesn't seem like it is going to change any time soon."

In April, Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly asked the minister for infrastructure for an update on the new centres.

The department said DVA awarded the new Vehicle Testing Solution contract to MAHA Ireland Ltd in March 2026.

In a statement to BBC News NI, a DfI spokesperson said: "The Driver and Vehicle Agency is progressing a programme of work with its new contractor to install and commission vehicle testing equipment at Hydebank, followed by Mallusk, where construction was completed in December 2025.

"This follows the termination of the previous vehicle testing equipment contract by mutual agreement in April 2025.

"Both centres are expected to open for vehicle testing within the next year.

"Once fully operational, each centre will be capable of testing more than 100,000 vehicles annually, significantly strengthening long-term testing capacity."

Peter Carmichael from NI Driving School said it's frustrating to have an MOT centre "just a couple of miles away" yet sometimes people have to travel a lot further to get a test.

"Whether you've just passed your driving test or you're an experienced driver having to travel 60, 70, 80, 100 miles to an MOT is frustrating for anybody," Carmichael said.

Carmichael said he feels the system has been neglected for years.

"To have multi-million pound centres that are built and aren't delivering on taxpayers money you know it's very frustrating," he said.

He welcomed the idea of opening more test centres as the more cars checked is better for road safety across NI.

"We all want the same goal here. We all want to be able to MOT a car as soon as possible in a convenient location," he said.

PSNI Superintendent Jonathan Wilson said every driver has a responsibility to ensure their vehicle is roadworthy.

This includes fully working lights and electrics, tyres in good condition with sufficient tread and the overall condition of the vehicle.

"In the event police encounter a vehicle with no current MOT, so long as we can ascertain that a vehicle is roadworthy, has a forthcoming MOT test date and is not SORNED, then police will not take any further action," he said.