Daytime MOT - Police view

[Red Herring]

The lighting regulations specifically say that if a machine is not fitted with a front or rear position lamp then it is exempt the rest of the lighting regulations provided it is used in daylight hours and not in conditions of seriously reduced visibility.

A front position lamp, in the case of a motorcycle, can be a headlamp. A brake lamp is not a rear position lamp so you can have one, and still be exempt the remainder of the regulations, however be careful if it a dual element bulb as that would be a position lamp, unless it is not fitted with a system of wiring to which it can be readily connected.

The rules around the switchgear come from the requirement that each and every part of a lighting system fitted to a vehicle must function, for example if your bike is fitted with lights and one didn't work, it would be no use you arguing that the light was fine, it's just the switch that is broken. If you don't have lights fitted you are exempt the regulations, so having the switchgear isn't a problem (I use my indicator switches for the engine mapping/pit lane limiter)

If you have a road bike post 1986 then if it has position lamps then it must have indicators. Bikes designed/intended for off road use don't need indicators. All bikes used on a road must have a horn. Hope that helps.