MOT, car tax and car insurance: the UK car renewal calendar

Which renewals does a UK car owner need to track?

A UK car owner needs to track four dates: the MOT, vehicle tax, car insurance and the photocard driving licence. Breakdown cover is a fifth, optional renewal that many drivers add.

Each one runs on its own cycle and comes from a different organisation, which is why they are easy to lose track of. The table below summarises them. The MOT rules described here apply in England, Scotland and Wales; Northern Ireland runs its own vehicle testing system.

Two of these depend on each other. A vehicle needs valid insurance and, where one is required, a valid MOT before it can be taxed. So a lapsed MOT or policy can also stop you taxing the car on time.

When is my MOT due, and can I get it done early?

Your first MOT is due by the third anniversary of the car's registration, then every year after that. You can get the MOT done up to a month (minus a day) before it runs out and still keep the same renewal date.

That early window is the most useful rule to know. Say your MOT runs out on 15 May. You can have the test any time from 16 April and your next one will still be due by 15 May the following year, so booking early costs you nothing. It also leaves time for repairs and a retest before the old certificate runs out.

GOV.UK offers free MOT reminders by text or email, and they are worth signing up for. Driving without a valid MOT can mean a fine of up to £1,000, so treat the reminder as a prompt to book, not a prompt to think about booking.

If you do not know the current expiry date, look it up with the GOV.UK MOT history checker using the registration number.

How does vehicle tax renewal work?

You tax a vehicle for 12 months or 6 months at a time, or spread the cost by Direct Debit monthly, every 6 months or yearly. DVLA sends a V11 reminder letter when the tax is due to run out.

Before you can tax the car, it needs valid insurance and, if it is old enough to need one, a valid MOT. That is why the order matters: if your MOT and tax fall in the same month, get the MOT done first so the tax renewal goes through without a hitch.

Keep your address up to date with DVLA so the V11 reaches you, and treat the letter as a backup rather than your only reminder, because post can go astray.

If you are not using the car and keep it off the road, you can make a SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification) instead of taxing it. You then need to tax it again before it goes back on the road.

Should I accept my car insurance renewal quote?

Not without checking. Since 1 January 2022, FCA rules mean your insurer cannot offer you a renewal price higher than a new customer would pay for the same cover through the same channel, but another insurer may still be cheaper.

In other words, the rules stopped your own insurer charging you more for staying. They did not make every insurer charge the same. A quick comparison is the only way to know whether your renewal price is a good one.

A simple routine works for most people:

1. Put the policy end date in your reminders with a month's notice.
2. When the renewal quote arrives, note the price and check the cover has not changed (excess, named drivers, mileage, courtesy car).
3. Get a few comparison quotes for the same level of cover.
4. Renew, switch, or ask your insurer whether it can match a cheaper quote.

Whatever you decide, do not let the policy lapse. Third party insurance is the legal minimum for driving on UK roads, and you cannot tax the car without valid insurance. Check whether your policy is set to renew automatically, so you know what doing nothing actually means.

How often do I need to renew my photocard driving licence?

A photocard driving licence must be renewed every 10 years, and drivers aged 70 and over renew every 3 years. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not renew.

This one catches people out because it comes round so rarely. Ten years is long enough to forget the card has an expiry date at all. The date is printed on the licence, so take it out of your wallet, find the expiry date and add it to your list with a reminder a month or two ahead. You can renew online on GOV.UK.

For drivers approaching 70, the switch to three-yearly renewals is worth noting in advance, especially if you help an older parent keep on top of their paperwork.

What happens to tax, MOT and insurance when you buy or sell a car?

Vehicle tax does not transfer when a car is sold, so the new keeper must tax it before driving it. The buyer also needs their own insurance in place first, because a car cannot be taxed without it.

If you are buying:

• Arrange insurance first, then tax the car.
• Check when the MOT runs out using the MOT history checker and add that date to your reminders straight away.
• Add the new tax renewal date (or Direct Debit dates) and the policy renewal date too, because none of them will match your old car.

If you are selling:

• Tell DVLA you have sold the car.
• Cancel or move your insurance so you are not paying to cover a car you no longer own.
• Delete or update the old car's MOT, tax and insurance reminders so they do not confuse you later.

If you also keep a vehicle outside the UK, the same principle applies: registration, inspection and insurance are separate dates. Our guide to renewal reminders for visas and vehicle registration covers that side.

How far ahead should I set car renewal reminders?

A month ahead is a good default for every car renewal. It lines up with the MOT early window, gives you time to compare insurance quotes, and leaves room to sort out problems before a deadline.

Official reminders help, but they arrive by different routes: a text or email for the MOT if you signed up, a letter for tax, a renewal notice from your insurer, and for the licence, a date on a card you rarely look at. Keeping every date in one place, each with the same lead time, means you are not relying on several organisations to get in touch.

A calendar can do this if you add each date as a yearly repeating event with an alert (see our comparison of Google Calendar and a dedicated renewal tracker). Renewal Tracker, a desktop app for Windows and Mac that is free to download, lets you add each renewal with how often it repeats and a reminder lead time you can set to 30 days. It sends a daily summary email for anything due soon, and when you mark an item as renewed it moves to the next cycle.

Car renewals are only part of the picture. For council tax, the TV Licence, home insurance and the rest, see the UK household renewals checklist.