[Marc]

@chris...
I think I heard a legal expert talking about this on the radio some time ago and his response was roughly this;

If you have a current MOT in the UK, that doesn't necessarily make your car 100% legal, in the sense that if you have had an accident since, and not had the car inspected, you may be guilty of negligence and the insurance company could use this as a reason not to cover you. Similarly, whilst driving abroad without an MOT might not, in itself, make your car unroadworthy, it could point to it if, for example, you had an accident in which faulty brakes may have been a factor.

So, if you must drive an MOT-less car abroad, be sure to have it serviced and checked-over at least once a year and keep documents to support this. It makes sense to do so anyway, of course, but it could also be vital evidence should you need to support yourself in court.