MOT advisory · manual section 7.1.6

Airbag (SRS) warning lamp does not illuminate

What this MOT advisory means, how often testers record it and what the usual repair costs. From 130,233,413 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

As an advisory, per 100 MOTs (n=130,233,413)0.039

Most often at25 years

Times recorded51,212

Times recorded adds every DVSA code with this wording, so a test can record it more than once, for example on two wheels under separate codes.

What it means

This is an advisory: the car passes its MOT, and the tester is warning about the part. An advisory is something the tester noticed that could become a defect later. The car passes its MOT. The advice is to monitor the part and repair it if it gets worse.

When it gets worse, the tester records it as a fail: Airbag (SRS) warning lamp indicates a fault.

Seat belts are checked for condition, security and operation, and the airbag and seat belt warning lamps are checked too.

The tester fails the car when the part reaches the point the MOT inspection manual describes (section 7.1.6):

An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction

Read this section of the MOT inspection manual on GOV.UK

The DVSA codes counted on this page: the manual item and the defect text as DVSA records them. The heading above joins the two, as a certificate does; the tester also adds the position, such as nearside front.
Result	Manual item	DVSA defect text	Records
Advisory	SRS malfunction indicator lamp	warning lamp does not illuminate (7.1.6)	51,212

Got an MOT advisory or defect on a certificate? Paste it into the MOT advisory checker to see what it means.

How common it is by age

Testers record it most at 25 years: 0.25 per 100 MOTs (n=313,355 tests at that age).

Per 100 MOT tests of cars at each age, all makes. We show no figure below 20 tests.
Age	Advisory per 100	Tests (n)
3 years	0.001	8,016,463
4 years	0.002	8,699,937
5 years	0.003	9,425,360
6 years	0.005	10,382,720
7 years	0.006	10,537,318
8 years	0.009	10,440,457
9 years	0.014	9,949,012
10 years	0.019	9,049,507
11 years	0.027	8,087,514
12 years	0.035	7,303,151
13 years	0.047	6,612,160
14 years	0.062	6,054,526
15 years	0.079	5,591,675
16 years	0.097	4,858,625
17 years	0.12	4,040,458
18 years	0.14	3,261,622
19 years	0.17	2,479,858
20 years	0.18	1,845,952
21 years	0.20	1,321,417
22 years	0.21	913,980
23 years	0.22	619,531
24 years	0.23	428,815
25 years	0.25	313,355

Repair and cost

The usual repair is airbag warning light repair.

No public source records the price of this whole job, and the time it takes varies from car to car, so we do not publish a single figure. Garages charge by the hour, so ask for a quote that lists labour time and parts. The rates below are what UK garages charge per hour.

The warning light or emissions reading is only the symptom. What the repair costs depends on what the diagnosis finds, so treat any figure as the starting point, not the full fix.

Local garage labour, per hour (65 shops)£78

Local garage, middle half£70 to £96

Main dealer labour, per hour (62 shops)£156

Main dealer, middle half£144 to £174

Median hourly rate charged for car repairs, from 1,058 local garage and 953 main dealer price quotes collected by the ONS, September 2025 to August 2026. The same shops are priced each month, so the number of shops is the real sample.

Airbag warning light repair: cost and the models that need it more often

Related MOT defects

Seat belt webbing slightly damaged or frayed0.24 per 100
Seat belt prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced0.18 per 100
Seat belt buckle not functioning as intended0.11 per 100
Seat belt prescribed area is corroded but not considered excessive0.096 per 100
Seat belt buckle slightly damaged0.094 per 100
Seat belt not functioning as intended0.083 per 100
Seat belt slightly damaged0.072 per 100
Seat belt retracting mechanism defective0.037 per 100
Seat belt buckle missing0.028 per 100
Seat belt webbing significantly weakened0.022 per 100

All other equipment defects All MOT defects Car repair costs

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Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025, and the MOT inspection manual published on GOV.UK. Prices: ONS consumer price inflation price quotes, September 2025 to August 2026, UK.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026. Prices updated 22 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA or the Office for National Statistics. How we calculate these figures · Data sources