MOT advisory explained
“Non-obligatory stop lamp not working”
The third brake light, the one in the rear window or on the tailgate, has stopped working. The MOT only requires two, so a car with a dead third one passes with a note. On vans with a bulb high up in a door that gets slammed all day, that note is close to routine.
A car needs two working brake lights, one each side. Most cars built in the last thirty years also have a third, mounted high in the centre. The tester found the third one dead and the two main ones working, so the legal requirement is met. Non-obligatory means exactly that.
5.1% fail on a stop lamp at the next test and 26.3% are advised again. The failures are not usually this lamp. They are one of the two obligatory ones going the same way a year later, which is why it is worth asking why the third one died.
That is for a lamp with a replaceable bulb. Many high level lamps are sealed LED units and are replaced whole, which costs more and varies by model.
If the third lamp went dark and the two main ones are dim or flickering too, the fault is shared: a corroded earth or a bad connector in the tailgate loom. A new bulb in the third lamp will not fix that, and the next MOT will find the main ones.
A “non-obligatory stop lamp not working” advisory means the high level third brake light has failed while the two required brake lights work, so the car passes. The fix is a bulb, or a complete lamp unit where the lamp is a sealed LED strip, costing £10–£40 for a bulb. According to DVSA MOT data analysed by PriceMyRepair, 5.1% of 526,670 such advisories followed to the next test failed on a stop lamp, and 26.3% were advised again.
The third brake light
Why it exists. It sits at eye level for the driver behind, above the boot lid or in the rear window, and it lights when the two main lamps do. It was introduced because it cuts rear-end collisions, and nearly every car sold new in Britain for the last twenty-five years has one. But the legal minimum is still two, so the MOT treats the third as optional.
What testers write. The notes leave no doubt which lamp this is. “high level” is first by a mile, and the next eleven are all ways of writing the same thing: “high level brake light”, “hi level”, “high level stop lamp”. Almost nobody uses the official phrase.
Why it dies. Three reasons, in order. The bulb, on older cars that have one. The LED strip, on newer cars, where a few dead diodes turn into a dead lamp. And the wiring, which on a tailgate or a van’s rear door runs through a rubber gaiter at the hinge and flexes every time the door is opened.
Will it fail next year?
Four wordings share this page, the main one covering nearly all of them. Together they have been recorded 1,195,332 times, and 526,670 can be followed to the same vehicle’s next MOT.
| What happened at the next test | Share |
|---|---|
| Failed on the same component | 5.1% |
| Same advisory recorded again | 26.3% |
According to DVSA MOT data analysed by PriceMyRepair: 526,670 advisories followed to the same vehicle’s next test. Rows can overlap.
It sits between a discoloured indicator at 6.1% and a clouded headlamp at 5.0%. A dead lamp does not get worse, so the failures come from elsewhere: a main brake lamp failing, or a switch or wiring fault that took the third lamp first.
More than one in four is advised again. A high level lamp is out of the driver’s sight, its failure has no warning on most cars, and the two main lamps still work. It is the definition of a fault that gets left.
| Advisory wording | Fails on same part | Advised again | Followed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direction indicator slightly discoloured | 6.1% | 19.6% | 1,901,107 |
| Stop lamp(s) non-obligatory stop lamp not working | 5.1% | 26.3% | 526,670 |
| Headlamp has a product on the lens | 5.0% | 22.9% | 1,248,099 |
| Supplementary restraint system warning lamp does not illuminate | 4.7% | 26.9% | 87,604 |
| Position lamp slightly affected by the operation of another lamp | 3.9% | 12.7% | 121,142 |
| Registration plate deteriorated | 3.7% | 40.1% | 4,283,862 |
| Brake pedal wearing smooth | 1.4% | 26.2% | 320,684 |
It appears early, at 0.8 per 1,000 tests on cars of 3–4 years, and rises to 5.4 in the late teens. On the oldest cars it falls away, because many of them were built before third brake lights were fitted. The share that fail next time peaks at 6.0%, at 13–15 years.
| Age of car | Per 1,000 tests | Fails on same part | Followed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–4 years | 0.8 | 3.4% | 21,761 |
| 5–6 years | 1.5 | 3.8% | 41,769 |
| 7–9 years | 2.7 | 4.4% | 103,030 |
| 10–12 years | 4.3 | 5.4% | 126,305 |
| 13–15 years | 5.6 | 6.0% | 116,641 |
| 16–19 years | 7.1 | 5.7% | 87,169 |
| 20 years and over | 5.4 | 4.8% | 22,523 |
On a car with a bulb, the lamp usually unclips from inside the boot or the rear shelf and the bulb pushes out. On a sealed LED lamp there is no bulb, and if it is dark the whole unit is replaced. Either takes minutes once you know which you have.
If a new bulb or lamp stays dark, the wiring is at fault. On a hatchback or van, open the tailgate and look at the rubber boot between the body and the door. Cracked rubber with green or broken wires inside is a common find.
Get someone to press the brake pedal while you watch all three lamps. If the two main ones are also dim, slow or flickering, the fault is upstream of the third lamp and the next test may fail on the main ones.
Exact wording on your certificate
The advisory is for the optional lamp. The failures below are for the two obligatory ones, and they are the tests a car with this advisory most often fails next.
| Line on the certificate | Result | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Stop lamp(s) non-obligatory stop lamp not working | Advisory — pass | 4.3.1 (a) (ii) |
| Stop lamp(s) slightly affected by the operation of another lamp | Advisory — pass | 4.3.3 (b) |
| Stop lamp slightly affected by the operation of another lamp | Advisory — pass | 4.3.3 (b) |
| Stop lamp damaged but function not impaired | Advisory — pass | 4.3.1 (b) (ii) |
| Stop lamp obligatory stop lamp not working | Major — fail | 4.3.1 (a) (ii) |
| Stop lamps all not working | Dangerous — fail, do not drive | 4.3.1 (a) (i) |
“central” and its variants make up nearly all the positioned entries, which is where a third brake light lives. A quarter have no position at all, because on most cars there is only one lamp this wording can mean.
| Position written by the tester | Share of all instances |
|---|---|
| Central | 33% |
| No position recorded | 26% |
| Central rear | 15% |
| Central rear upper | 9% |
| Central upper | 5% |
| Upper | 3% |
From 1,195,332 recorded instances. Testers can add their own note after the standard wording. The most common on this advisory: “high level” (73,646), “centre” (9,239), “high level brake light” (5,752), “hi level” (4,379), “high level brake light not working” (3,501), “center” (2,430), “high level stop lamp” (1,820), “hi-level” (1,482).
What it costs
| Job | Price fitted | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Replacement bulb, DIY | £10–£40 | Cars with a bulb-type high level lamp |
Sealed LED lamps are replaced complete and are priced by model, from inexpensive pattern parts on common vans to considerably more on cars where the lamp is built into a spoiler. A wiring repair in a tailgate gaiter is a labour job. Other prices are on the repair costs index.
Can I still drive with this advisory?
Fix it anyway. The third lamp is the one the driver behind sees first, and it is there because it prevents shunts. Check the two main lamps at the same time.
Enter your reg to see your car’s full MOT history. A high level lamp advisory two years running with a main lamp failure in between is a wiring fault, not a bulb.
Which cars get this advisory most?
The all-vehicle rate is 3.3 per 1,000 tests. On the models below it is four to seven times that.
| Model | Per 1,000 tests | Vs all cars | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renault Kangoo | 25 | 7.4× | 700,467 |
| Renault Trafic | 23 | 6.8× | 1,353,402 |
| Vauxhall Vivaro | 21 | 6.2× | 2,438,602 |
| Citroen Dispatch | 18 | 5.5× | 556,497 |
| Ford Fusion | 18 | 5.4× | 717,369 |
| Ford Transit | 16 | 4.7× | 9,907,752 |
| Ford S-Max | 15 | 4.4× | 833,176 |
| Peugeot Expert | 14 | 4.3× | 628,355 |
| Peugeot Partner | 14 | 4.3× | 1,565,023 |
| Renault Master | 14 | 4.2× | 760,734 |
Model families are grouped by the first word of the DVSA model name, so “Transit” covers every Transit variant. Only models with at least 60,000 tests are ranked.
Eight of the ten are vans. The Renault Kangoo leads at 7.4 times the average, with the Renault Trafic and Vauxhall Vivaro, which are the same van, close behind, then the Citroen Dispatch, Peugeot Expert and Peugeot Partner. On a van the high level lamp sits at the top of a rear door that is slammed dozens of times a day, and its wiring runs through the door hinge.
The Ford Fusion and Ford S-Max are the two cars, both with the lamp in a large tailgate that flexes its loom the same way.
What to do next
- Press the pedal and check all three. With someone watching, or reversed up to a shop window at night.
- Work out which type you have. A bulb unclips from inside. An LED strip has no bulb and comes out as a unit.
- Replace the bulb or the unit. Give the registration when ordering. LED units differ by year within one model.
- If it stays dark, check the gaiter. The rubber boot at the tailgate or rear door hinge. Broken wires inside it are repairable.
Non-obligatory stop lamp FAQ
What does non-obligatory stop lamp not working mean?
The high level third brake light has failed. A car legally needs two working brake lights, one each side, and those are fine, so the third one being out is an advisory and the car passes.
Is a broken third brake light an MOT fail?
No, as long as the two main brake lights work. It becomes a failure only if an obligatory brake light stops working. According to DVSA MOT data analysed by PriceMyRepair, 5.1% of 526,670 such advisories were followed by a stop lamp failure at the next test.
How do I fix a high level brake light?
If it has a bulb, unclip the lamp from inside the boot or rear shelf and change it. If it is a sealed LED unit, replace the unit. If a new bulb stays dark, the wiring through the tailgate hinge is the usual fault.
How much does it cost?
A bulb costs £10–£40 and is a DIY job. A sealed LED unit is priced by model. These are estimates and final quotes come from garages.
Why do vans get this advisory so often?
The lamp sits at the top of a rear door that is opened and slammed all day, and its wiring flexes through the door hinge each time. The Renault Kangoo, Renault Trafic and Vauxhall Vivaro get it six to seven times as often as the average vehicle.
Do I have to fix it?
Not legally, but you should. The high level lamp is at eye level for the driver behind and was introduced because it reduces rear-end collisions. It is also often the first sign of a wiring fault that will take the main lamps next.
How these figures were calculated. According to DVSA MOT data analysed by PriceMyRepair, from the DVSA anonymised MOT test results (Open Government Licence v3.0): 350,943,111 tests. This advisory was recorded 1,195,332 times; 526,670 of those were followed to the same vehicle’s next test between 180 and 730 days later. “Fails on the same part” means a failure at that next test under the same defect code and naming the same component, on either side of the vehicle. Testers do not always name a component the same way twice, so the figure is a floor. Method and how to cite.