"Can you send me a copy of my MOT?"
A customer rings. Their car passed last month and now they are selling it, and the buyer wants to see the paperwork. They cannot find it. Another rings to ask what an advisory about "slight play" means. A third wants to know when their next MOT is due for their company's records.
Each call takes the desk away from the customers in front of them. The information exists in the official records and on your system, but the customer does not know where to find it, and your centre is the obvious one to ask.
Paper is handed over at the worst moment
The result is handed over at the desk while the customer is paying, finding their keys and thinking about getting back to work. The paperwork goes in the glovebox or the bin. Official records are available online, but many customers do not know that, or how to find them.
Failure and advisory items are written in the precise language used in testing, which is accurate but not always clear to a non-mechanic. The customer nods at the desk and then wonders afterwards what it meant.
There is also a missed chance. The moment after a test is when the customer is most aware of your centre. If nothing reaches them afterwards, the next time they think about an MOT is when a reminder from someone else lands.
What lost paperwork costs
| Call type | What it takes |
|---|---|
| Copy of the result | Looking it up and explaining where to find it |
| What does this item mean? | An explanation over the phone |
| When is my next MOT due? | Another lookup |
| Company needs a record | Emailing documents one by one |
| Selling the car | Customer stressed, buyer waiting |
Business customers feel this most. A fleet manager who has to chase each driver for their MOT paperwork, or ring your desk for copies, would much rather have the results arrive by email as a matter of routine, and will remember which centre made that easy.
How we build a results message
- After each test, the result is recorded on your own system with the registration, result, expiry date and any failure or advisory items, picked from a list or copied from your notes.
- A message goes to the customer by email and text within minutes, with the result, expiry date and your centre's name and number.
- Any items are explained in plain words you approve, alongside the official wording, with a photo if the tester took one.
- The message includes a link to the public MOT history for the vehicle, so the customer knows where the official record lives.
- For business customers, results can go to a named fleet contact as well as the driver.
- The message ends with a simple option to receive a reminder next year, recorded with the customer's permission.
The official record is always the one held by the testing service. Your message is a helpful summary, and it says so.
A month later, no call
The customer selling their car searches their email for your centre's name, finds the results message with the link to the official history, and sends it to the buyer. The customer with the advisory about slight play read the plain-words explanation the day of the test. The company's fleet contact has every result in their inbox.
The desk takes fewer calls asking for copies, and the reminder next year goes to someone who asked for it.
- A results message after every test
- Items explained in plain words
- A link to the official record
- Reminders for those who ask
The expiry date in the message also means customers who keep their own records, or who have to report dates to an employer or lease company, have it in writing without asking.
Are customers ringing for copies?
- Customers regularly ring for copies of their MOT result.
- People ask what advisory or failure items mean.
- Business customers ask for results to be emailed.
- Customers do not know where the official record is.
- Nothing reaches the customer after they leave.