You can take your car to another garage if it fails MOT.
However you can only take your car to another garage for an MOT test if your current MOT certificate is still valid and the MOT test did not report a dangerous defect.
If your current MOT certificate is not valid or if the MOT test reported a dangerous defect then you will have to tow the vehicle to another garage for the MOT test.
If the repairs are done elsewhere but the MOT retest is performed at the original tester, you will pay a partial fee.
If you choose to get both the repairs and test performed at a different garage, you will pay full price for a fresh MOT test.
You'll only need a partial retest if you take the vehicle from the test center for repairs and take it back within 10 working days.
You can be charged a partial retest fee for this.
In all other cases, you'll need to get a full retest and pay the full MOT test fee again.
As long as the repairs are done within 10 working days of the MOT test, your vehicle can then be retested for free.
If you want your car to be repaired elsewhere, you can still get it retested for free at the original test center as long as you return it before the end of the next working day.
Most MOT garages are honest and aren't out to scam or rip you off.
Even if they do MOT repair work and it is therefore in their interest to fail your vehicle most won't resort to criminal behavior in order to do so.
Blown bulbs are the single biggest cause of MOT failures, and are one of the simplest and cheapest to fix.
Before the MOT test, enroll a friend to help you check all of the lights are working – front, rear, indicators (including side repeaters), brake lights (including central repeaters), and fog lights front and back.