# Absence of braking action on any axle required to have brakes upon application of the service brakes (such as missing brakes or brake shoe(s) failing to move upon application of a wedge, S-cam, cam, or disc brake) — Vehicle inspection defect categories: MOT major, minor and dangerous verdicts

For Absence of braking action on any axle required to have brakes upon application of the service brakes (such as missing brakes or brake shoe(s) failing to move upon application of a wedge, S-cam, cam, or disc brake), category is Reject; inspection item number is 1; defect reference is a.(1); inspection item is Brake System; authority is US 49 CFR Appendix A to Part 396, recorded from its source on 2026-08-06.

- **Defect:** Absence of braking action on any axle required to have brakes upon application of the service brakes (such as missing brakes or brake shoe(s) failing to move upon application of a wedge, S-cam, cam, or disc brake) _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Category:** Reject
- **Inspection item number:** 1 _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Defect reference:** a.(1)
- **Inspection item:** Brake System
- **Authority:** US 49 CFR Appendix A to Part 396 _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_

## What the source says

> (1) Absence of braking action on any axle required to have brakes upon application of the service brakes (such as missing brakes or brake shoe(s) failing to move upon application of a wedge, S-cam, cam, or disc brake).

## Source

- https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/appendix-A_to_part_396

Last verified: 2026-08-06. Review by: 2027-02-02.
Part of [Vehicle inspection defect categories: MOT major, minor and dangerous verdicts](https://referencesource.org/vehicle-inspection-defect-categories/).