Does the Mercedes-Benz A-Class fail the MOT on vehicle identification more than it should?
The Mercedes-Benz A-Class records 0.47 vehicle identification failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 0.32 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (+0.15, 95% interval +0.14 to +0.16). It ranks 176 of 636 models on vehicle identification (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on vehicle identification · check a Mercedes-Benz A-Class by registration
What exactly fails on vehicle identification?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Mercedes-Benz A-Class is “Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements”, recorded 4,800 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements | 4,800 | 0.31 |
| Number plate inscription missing or illegible | 1,364 | 0.09 |
| Number plate missing or so insecure that it is likely to fall off | 823 | 0.05 |
| Number plate showing an incorrect registration | 337 | 0.02 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,569,549 (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 Mercedes-Benz A-Class gets a vehicle identification advisory, how often does it fail next time?
2.9% of Mercedes-Benz A-Class MOTs with a vehicle identification advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.1 months and 5,624 miles later (16,187 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 16,187 (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
Mercedes-Benz A-Class 1998 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 1999 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2000 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2001 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2002 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2003 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2004 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2005 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2006 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2007 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2008 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2009 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2010 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2011 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2012 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2013 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2014 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2015 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2016 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2017 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2018 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2019 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2020 · Mercedes-Benz A-Class in Finland · Mercedes-Benz A-Class in the Netherlands · Mercedes-Benz A-Class in Norway · Mercedes-Benz A-Class by postcode area · Mercedes-Benz A-Class body, chassis and structure failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class brakes failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class noise, emissions and leaks failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class road wheels failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class seat belts and airbags failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class steering failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class suspension failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class tyres failures · Mercedes-Benz A-Class visibility failures