A BOLTON-BASED charity received a pleasant surprise when they took their van for an MOT last week.

Bolton NICE took their van to Arches Garage in Darcy Lever for it's MOT. However, the van failed and required two new tyres fitting.

But Martin McLoughin, the co-ordinator at Bolton NICE was left 'gobsmacked' when the garage told them that they wouldn't charge for the MOT or the repairs.

Martin said: "We took the van along for its MOT and it actually failed for a couple of things.

"Then the lady behind the counter said to me, leave it here and you're not paying for the MOT or the repairs.

"I wasn't sure how busy they were but they did get it done as quickly as possible. They fitted it with brand new tyres.

"It was such a nice thing for them to do, I was gobsmacked.

"We use the van to transport food and furniture, it's a life saver at times."

The free MOT has enabled Bolton Nice to keep helping people during the coronavirus, they've even given out flowers to NHS staff.

Martin said:"At the moment we're trying to get food to those who need it, the vehicles are keeping busy right now.

"Lots of people benefit from what we do. We're still giving food out to the community and helping those in crisis.

"We're obviously limited right now with what we can do."