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I sometimes see cars being driven around with various bits of bodywork missing, i.e. front or rear bumpers, even the odd bonnet missing. Are these cars legally allowed on the road? I have even had my own bumper resprayed once and they let me drive it without it, but obviously the vehicle is minus a crumple-zone.

Phil

From the "Ask Jack" archives - 14 December 2009

There is a rule called 'External Projections' which can be enforced at time of Warrant of Fitness. In summary, the rule states that risks of any component causing injury in the event of an accident must be minimised.

For example, if a pedestrian was to come in contact with the front of a vehicle without a bonnet and was lifted and fell into the engine bay you can imagine the potential injury that could be inflicted.

Similarly the same could be said for a front or rear bumper.

I would imagine a traffic officer could remove a car from the road and / or issue an infringement notice using the same principals. You would like to think however some commonsense would prevail.

The other important thing to remember also, is the need for lights such as indicators to work at all times, and these are often fitted into the bumpers. If this was the case, the vehicle should definitely not be driven on public roads.