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MOT minor defect explained

“Windscreen wiper blade defective”

Recorded on 1,281 of the 25,257 cars checked on this site. Every time it was recorded as a minor defect.

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Cars with it
1,281
of 25,257 checked
Share of cars
5.1%
at least once
Recorded as
Minor defect
100% of 1,398 visits
Back next time
4.6%
of 1,142 follow-up visits

What it means

This entry means a wiper blade was damaged, for example a split, hardened or partly missing rubber edge, but the wipers still cleared the screen well enough.

It is a minor defect, which does not fail the car by itself. A wiper that does not clear the screen effectively is recorded as a failure.

How it shows up in the records

Minor defect 100%
4.6% came back
The same entry, on the same part of the car, was recorded again at the next test in 4.6% of cases.
38,835 miles
Median recorded mileage when it first appeared, on cars a median of 5 years old. From the 607 cars whose whole MOT history is recent enough to compare.

Share of cars with this entry, by year of manufacture

0.0%1971–733.7%1980–822.4%1983–850.9%1986–880.9%1989–911.7%1992–943.0%1995–974.1%1998–004.9%2001–034.5%2004–067.5%2007–096.9%2010–126.5%2013–156.4%2016–184.1%2019–211.9%2022–24

Models where it is recorded most

ModelCars with itShareSame-age cars
Mitsubishi Outlander5 of 3216%6.3%
Ferrari GTC45 of 3514%5.9%
Dacia Sandero12 of 9013%5.3%
Toyota Verso6 of 4214%6.6%
Ford Transit Connect7 of 5413%5.3%
Maserati GranTurismo13 of 9414%6.7%
Maserati Levante17 of 14612%4.7%
Toyota Auris19 of 14313%6.6%

Models with 20 or more cars checked here. “Same-age cars” is the share among all checked cars built in the same years, so an older model is compared with older cars.

What to check before you buy

  • Lift each wiper and run a finger along the rubber edge, feeling for splits, nicks or a hardened edge.
  • Run the wipers with the washers. They should clear the screen in one or two sweeps without smearing or juddering.
  • Ask whether the blades have been replaced since the test.
  • Check the rear wiper too if the car has one.

Cars checked here with this entry

Other visibility entries explained

Windscreen wiper does not clear the windscreen effectivelyWindscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's viewWindscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid

Checking a car with this on its MOT?

Repair costs depend on the car, so this page does not quote one. Enter the plate and the free report estimates them for that car, alongside every test and advisory on its record.

Check a car’s MOT history

Counts are of cars checked on this site, from official public records. Updated 22 Sept 2026 · figures as of 4 Oct 2026. All MOT entries explained.