Editorial file
Jamie Dawson
Editor of Logbook.co.uk. Director of Gemini AMPM, a UK fire and security business, so the Fire Safety and Security guides here are written from first-hand experience. Writes plain-English guides to UK record-keeping rules. .
Every guide filed under this byline is written to the standards set out in our editorial standards.

Guides filed
BYLINE
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Guides by Jamie Dawson
№TitleFiledRead
1
Telling DVLA You've Sold Your Car: Change of Ownership Explained
The complete change-of-ownership process when you sell a car — online and postal routes, the green slip, what happens to your tax, and why speed protects you.
09 Sep 2026
4 min read
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2
How Long to Keep Fire Safety Records: UK Retention Guide by Record Type
The Fire Safety Order sets no retention periods, so how long should you keep alarm test logs, drill records, extinguisher certificates, fire door checks and risk assessments? A record-by-record answer.
07 Sep 2026
6 min read
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3
Fire Drill Records: How Often, How to Run One and What to Log (UK)
UK law expects at least one fire drill a year, more in higher-risk premises, and a record of each one. How to plan a drill, what to time, what to write down and how long to keep it.
07 Sep 2026
6 min read
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4
Weekly Fire Alarm Test: Procedure, Rotation and What to Record (UK)
How to run the weekly fire alarm test the way BS 5839-1 and fire officers expect: same time each week, a different call point every time, alarm receiving centre on test, and a logbook entry that proves it happened.
07 Sep 2026
7 min read
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5
When Is a New Car's First MOT? The 3-Year Rule (and the Exceptions)
Three years from first registration — not from when you bought it. Finding the real date, the taxi/ambulance exceptions, and what happens if you miss it.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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6
Lost Your MOT Certificate? Why It Barely Matters Now (UK)
The paper is a receipt; the database is the record. How to print your MOT history free — and the one situation where a duplicate certificate is worth getting.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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7
MOT-Exempt Vehicles: The 40-Year Rule and the V112 Declaration (UK)
Rolling 40-year exemption, the 'substantially changed' catch, and the V112 declaration at tax time — plus why exempt never means unroadworthy.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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8
How Early Can You MOT a Car Without Losing the Renewal Date? (UK)
A month minus a day: the earliest you can test while keeping your renewal date — and the date printed on your certificate that makes it foolproof.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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9
Failed the MOT? Retest Rules, the Free Window & Driving After a Fail (UK)
The free-retest windows nobody explains properly — and the dangerous-vs-major distinction that decides whether you can legally drive home.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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10
MOT Advisories Explained: What They Mean and Which Ones Matter (UK)
An advisory isn't a fail — it's a forecast. Which advisories to act on now, which can wait, and how to read a stranger's advisory history before buying.
26 Aug 2026
2 min read
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11
Your Fire Risk Assessment Found Problems. What Proves You Fixed Them?
A Brighton landlord was prosecuted after ten months of repeat visits. The offence was not finding faults. It was not closing them out, on the record.
25 Aug 2026
5 min read
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12
Changed Your Car's Colour? How to Update the DVLA (Respray & Wrap Rules)
Resprays and full wraps must be notified to DVLA: free, by post, section-and-sign. Decals and stripes don't. The process, the ANPR risk, and the insurer step.
17 Aug 2026
2 min read
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