Does the Land Rover Defender fail the MOT on seat belts and airbags more than it should?
The Land Rover Defender records 1.91 seat belts and airbags failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 2.46 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−0.55, 95% interval −0.58 to −0.51). It ranks 461 of 627 models on seat belts and airbags (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on seat belts and airbags · check a Land Rover Defender by registration
What exactly fails on seat belts and airbags?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Land Rover Defender is “The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired”, recorded 2,975 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired | 2,975 | 0.46 |
| Seat belt buckle missing, damaged or not functioning as intended | 2,230 | 0.34 |
| A seat belt or flexible stalk damaged | 2,173 | 0.34 |
| A seat belt webbing or flexible stalk significantly stretched or weakened | 1,900 | 0.29 |
| Seat belt not functioning as intended or of an incorrect type | 1,140 | 0.18 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 648,232 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Land Rover Defender gets a seat belts and airbags advisory, how often does it fail next time?
3.7% of Land Rover Defender MOTs with a seat belts and airbags advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.1 months and 3,272 miles later (42,533 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 42,533 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Land Rover Defender 1998 · Land Rover Defender 1999 · Land Rover Defender 2000 · Land Rover Defender 2001 · Land Rover Defender 2002 · Land Rover Defender 2003 · Land Rover Defender 2004 · Land Rover Defender 2005 · Land Rover Defender 2006 · Land Rover Defender 2007 · Land Rover Defender 2008 · Land Rover Defender 2009 · Land Rover Defender 2010 · Land Rover Defender 2011 · Land Rover Defender 2012 · Land Rover Defender 2013 · Land Rover Defender 2014 · Land Rover Defender 2015 · Land Rover Defender 2016 · Land Rover Defender 2020 · Land Rover Defender in the Netherlands · Land Rover Defender by postcode area · Land Rover Defender body, chassis and structure failures · Land Rover Defender brakes failures · Land Rover Defender vehicle identification failures · Land Rover Defender lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Land Rover Defender noise, emissions and leaks failures · Land Rover Defender road wheels failures · Land Rover Defender steering failures · Land Rover Defender suspension failures · Land Rover Defender tyres failures · Land Rover Defender visibility failures