My friend Dave needs some car tax advice

[Charles Morgan]

My friend Dave is buying a new car which he is collecting on Wednesday 150 miles away.

The car has just been taken off SORN by the existing owner, taxed and Mot'ed for the purpose of selling it.

Because of the new system for vehicle taxation Dave thought he'd sort all that out in advance so on the day of collection he wouldn't have to spend time on the phone to the DVLA. Using the new vehicle supplement reference number he tried the online system which, alas, refused to process the request because there had been a successful transaction recently.

So Dave calls the DVLA and gets through after 10 minutes. Again the same response, they can't tax the car. To tax it Dave must go with the V5C and the MOT to a post office. Dave gives some polite feedback on how the new system is useless.

So the questions, should Dave date the transaction a day later than reality so the car is taxed on the drive home using the existing tax and then can be changed the following day? (the seller has no issue - he's just blown a month's tax he won't get back). What should he write to his MP on how useless and pointless this new system is?

 

[davidjpowell]

My friend Chas bought a Clio recently as his useless MB is still borked - towards end of October.

Chas saw a world of hurt trying to tax said Clio on the day, and as it was taxed and the paperwork would take a while to catch up at DVLA drove on his way home.

Chas then taxed the Clio a few days later fonline using the new keepers supplement from the beginning of November, as that was the only option. To date no one has had a pop at Chas.

 

[st13phil]

So the questions, should Dave date the transaction a day later than reality so the car is taxed on the drive home using the existing tax and then can be changed the following day? (the seller has no issue - he's just blown a month's tax he won't get back).

Personally, if I were Dave, I'd date the transaction as the day of collection and drive it home.

What should he write to his MP on how useless and pointless this new system is?

Anything he likes because he'll get a pat answer about how wonderful the new paperless system is, and how much money it is saving the taxpayer. It'll probably also tell Dave how wonderful the DVLA is in general. The MP's response will serve no useful purpose other than to temporarily reduce the need for Andrex's product line in Dave's house.

 

[gIzzE]

The DVLA won't remove the tax until they get the V5 back from the seller, this will give you enough time to get home without getting caught by ANPR at least.

But it is a shambles of ****.

You try to go online to tax it and it says it is already taxed.
It should be any car sold has tax for the end of the month only, and then you must tax it from 1st of the following month.

 

[Annie19t]

The DVLA won't remove the tax until they get the V5 back from the seller, this will give you enough time to get home without getting caught by ANPR at least.

But it is a shambles of ****.

You try to go online to tax it and it says it is already taxed.
It should be any car sold has tax for the end of the month only, and then you must tax it from 1st of the following month.

Road tax is now non transferable and as such the car will have no tax from date of sale

 

[Dee James]

my "freind" recently bought his Merc, totally forgot about the new tax law/didn`t read it properly and discovered two days later he needed to tax it sharpish and had no issues at all doing it online even though the tax disc still had two months to run

 

[st13phil]

It should be any car sold has tax for the end of the month only, and then you must tax it from 1st of the following month.

Far too simple. And too little opportunity for the DVLA to make a few extra bob.

 

[Charles Morgan]

Something has to pay for the bureaucracy there.

My SM recently had an MOT. A week or so afterwards I received a letter from the DVLA stating that the chassis number recorded at the MOT for the car differed from the records at the DVLA. Could I please fill in the chassis number from the MOT certificate, the chassis number as recorded on the V5C and the chassis number on the car.

I did - the V5C showed it as a six figures beginning SC----. The MOT certificate showed 00SC---- as did the chassis plate. I filled in all the figures correctly, and returned the form.

A month later another letter arrives. It tells me I haven't recorded the information from the car but simply copied it from the V5C, which is of course untrue. Could I please send them a photograph of the chassis plate. This time I take a photo, fill in all the details exactly the same as before, and make the point if they had wanted a photo I would have taken one the first time and saved being told I had done something I hadn't. 2 weeks later get back a new V5C showing the chassis number now to be 00SC----.

 

[MicB]

I think the car is taxed at least until the end of any given month regardless of ownership/registered keeper. DVLA have the money; the car is taxed and can be driven on the public highway.
The fact is that the car is taxed and I do not believe that DVLA will refund the vendor before such time as they are satisfied that the car has been sold and purchased and tax is continuous (or much more likely tax is duplicated for the month of the transaction) by virtue of the purchaser having re-taxed the car or the car is again SORNED.
Surely this must be the sole justification for the duplication of tax for the month in which a car changes ownership given that tax is not transferable?

That is how I see it and I would drive the car.

Mic

 

[automaniaman]

OP, your friend Dave's quest to remain law abiding, is a futile, just post date it....

 

[wongl]

According to the DVLA, see the video at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes, the new keeper can apply for new tax using "the 12 digit reference number on your New Keeper Supplement (V5C/2) if you've just bought the vehicle".

Has anyone tried this?

 

[Charles Morgan]

Indeed! Dave is well known to members here as a carefree rapscallion getting into all sorts of scrapes with the law for speeding, which he then tries to wriggle out of on technicalities. I deprecate such criminality and wished to make sure Dave remains legal, but he's having none of it.

 

[Charles Morgan]

According to the DVLA, see the video at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes, the new keeper can apply for new tax using "the 12 digit reference number on your New Keeper Supplement (V5C/2) if you've just bought the vehicle".

Has anyone tried this?

Yes, Dave.

Because the vehicle had only recently been taxed it didn't work.

 

[Dee James]

According to the DVLA, see the video at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes, the new keeper can apply for new tax using "the 12 digit reference number on your New Keeper Supplement (V5C/2) if you've just bought the vehicle".

Has anyone tried this?

yes, about 2 weeks ago - with no issues

 

[Will]

Yep, I'd just drive it home having dated the V5 for the correct day. It's still taxed until they receive notification from the previous owner and I assume you'll be taxing it from the same month.

Cheeky sods will make you pay from the beginning of this month whilst the pocketing the cash from the remainder of the unused month that the previous owner paid for.

Being that there's no paper discs issued nowadays I can see no reason for tax to charged in this way.

 

[Charles Morgan]

Being that there's no paper discs issued nowadays I can see no reason for

Agreed - a step solely designed to harvest more revenue.

There is a very dodgy pop-up garage that has opened up just half a mile away, and it has been parking numerous overflow cars in a residential street round the corner. None have discs now, all were found to be untaxed by checking online, yet Plod who had been round twice to have words with the owner saw no evil.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

I'm afraid the DVLA has gone from being one of the best run and efficient government organisations to being a run-of-the-mill beuracratic nightmare.

The rot set in the day they closed the local offices and it's been an absolute joke since then.

 

[219]

My friend Dave is buying a new car which he is collecting on Wednesday 150 miles away.

The car has just been taken off SORN by the existing owner, taxed and Mot'ed for the purpose of selling it.

Because of the new system for vehicle taxation Dave thought he'd sort all that out in advance so on the day of collection he wouldn't have to spend time on the phone to the DVLA. Using the new vehicle supplement reference number he tried the online system which, alas, refused to process the request because there had been a successful transaction recently.

So Dave calls the DVLA and gets through after 10 minutes. Again the same response, they can't tax the car. To tax it Dave must go with the V5C and the MOT to a post office. Dave gives some polite feedback on how the new system is useless.

So the questions, should Dave date the transaction a day later than reality so the car is taxed on the drive home using the existing tax and then can be changed the following day? (the seller has no issue - he's just blown a month's tax he won't get back). What should he write to his MP on how useless and pointless this new system is?

Dave could book the new ( to him ) car in for an MOT near his home , then , as long as valid insurance is in place , he can legally drive 'to the pre-arranged test' regardless of the tax status .

Since the seller will probably notify DVLA of the change of keeper by post , the car will still 'appear' to be taxed to any ANPR cameras it might happen to pass on the way to the MOT test , but if Dave does happen to get stopped for any reason , then he can show that he is legitimately taking the car to be tested .

 

[DSB SL AMG]

Reading all this...I really think that due to the hassle most people would drive a new car home if it has valid tax, which is probably illegal, be interesting to see how the Police handled this if you got pulled or were in an accident on the drive back...the new rules seem not to be running smoothly

 

[219]

The other , most obvious , solution is to ask the seller to deliver the car to Dave's home ( which he can do while the car is still his property ) .

The deal can be done , and the car parked up Dave's drive , pending the vehicle being taxed , and Dave can either give the seller a lift home , or to the railway station , as appropriate .