car tax heads up

[MrIan]

Just a quick note to new owners CHECK YOUR CAR IS TAXED.
I bought a tax exempt 1959 minor on 22/3 even though the car is tax exempt and had a current disc on the screen valid till August 2015 I checked on the Gov website and found it was classed as an untaxed vehicle.
I asumed as it was tax exempt with current valid disc all was well, but as far as they were concerned the tax was liable from 1/3 (which is before I bought it) and in theory able to be towed away if seen parked on the road.

[panky]

Unfortunately road fund licence is no longer transferable (even free historic) and a new has to re-tax it before it can be used on the road

[MrIan]

Yes it's daft really that it includes tax exempt historic vehicles too as obviously mine had a valid disc on the screen, valid till August !!. So with my car being liable to be towed and impounded I've been through the online taxing system to tax a car that's tax exempt that's got a valid disc on display anyway to be told they're not sending a disc as one doesn't need to be displayed !!

I wonder how many thousands of pounds the people involved with this system earned coming up with a ? Well utter farce of a system.

[les]

With being tax exempt and not having to display any more, you'd think all bases would be covered but common sense is not always a priority in some circles.

[LouiseM]

I wonder how many thousands of pounds the people involved with this system earned coming up with a ? Well utter farce of a system.

It was introduced to reduce the number of uninsured drivers on the road.

[bmcecosse]

And does it ?? The new ruling is that if the car is taxed (free or not) then it MUST be insured - even if it's locked away in your garage! So if you are taking a car off the road - and perhaps not renewing the insurance - you must put the car on SORN...

[MrIan]

As far as I can see with normal taxed vehicles all it does is increase their income via sales of used taxable cars. On each car sale ortransfer the seller looses out and only gets full months value of the disc refunded. The buyer will loose out too by having to pay for the same month that the seller wasn't refunded for !! .
It's nothing but a big money making con and nothing else, has nothing to do with insurance and unless I had checked I could very well have had my car that was displaying a current tax disc impounded.

[MrIan]

Anyway rant over!! Sorry about that. My main reaaon for posting was for anyone else that has just bought an historic tax exempt vehicle must tax / apply for it even if it is taxed already !!!!

[kennatt]

I wonder how many thousands of pounds the people involved with this system earned coming up with a ? Well utter farce of a system.

It was introduced to reduce the number of uninsured drivers on the road.

It certainly has, my daughters partner is a serving police officer and says that the number of prosecutions for no,ins and no mot, has gone up massively,before the change,officers and traffic wardens saw a current disc on the car and assumed it was insured and mot'd,and didn't bother to check. NOW because there is no disc they check via the internet three times more vehicles,and detect many more offences. So for me has to be a better system,its apparently also designed so that when a vehicle is sold the tax is automatically refunded to the previous owner,so encourages everyone to notify change of ownership thereby forcing the new owner to tax the vehicle. Has to be a better system.

[MrIan]

They could check via the Internet before !! I've been checking tax status online for my vehicles for years. They just didn't, so why do they do it more now?

[bmcecosse]

I'm not so sure that tax on a sold vehicle is automatically returned... In fact I know it is NOT - having recently traded in a car with a couple of months tax on it - and not a penny has come back. Since it was only £30 a year to tax it - i didn't bother to claim - but nothing has come back 'automatically'.

[bmcecosse]

Read about it here .... http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... l-facebook

[LobbyLudd]

And does it ?? The new ruling is that if the car is taxed (free or not) then it MUST be insured - even if it's locked away in your garage! So if you are taking a car off the road - and perhaps not renewing the insurance - you must put the car on SORN...

Also - if and when you later decide to take a post 1960 vehicle placed on a SORN to a M.O.T station for it's statutory MOT test, for the intention of subsequent use on the road, say in the near future again, you will need insurance cover.
(A vehicle on a SORN can legally be driven to and from an approved MOT station only for a 'pre -booked' test, providing it is insured)

[bmcecosse]

And nowhere does it say that the MOT must be the nearest one - some have driven the length of the land to get to that pre-booked MOT !!

[faversham999]

If you want to keep a car number tell the DVLA a couple of weeks before you sell the car, as the new owner can only tax the car when he has the log book with the new Reg number. so cannot drive the car on the Road

[kennatt]

They could check via the Internet before !! I've been checking tax status online for my vehicles for years. They just didn't, so why do they do it more now?

No they use a totally independent system called the police national computer,put car no in it tells them tax,mot,and insurance status,also.reg.keeper.and address ,.if he has a criminal record , if he is wanted anywhere in the country,who else is suspected of having use of the vehicle ,if the vehicle is suspected of being used for criminal activity,if there is a warning that the driver/occupants maybe violent .Each patrol car has a terminal,and each foot officer has direct link via radio,and its just about instant response .Its been in use for years. For checking vehicles,. previously ,if they weren't interested in the driver,as in a parked vehicle.quicker to see a current tax disc and assume documents were ok,but now they have no indication of that without doing a PNC . Now many more are being put through the system

[LobbyLudd]

And nowhere does it say that the MOT must be the nearest one - some have driven the length of the land to get to that pre-booked MOT !!

Thats very scary ! - just thought, some may also have had a car sitting on SORN deteriorating for ages and may think just renewing insurance allows them to drive that vehicle to an MOT in an un-roadworthy or even dangerous state. (against the terms of any car insurance)

[ASL642]

I find this not needing an MOT quite scary. Now we have vehicles being dragged out of barns and because they are pre 1960 they can be put on the road - No checks on brakes/steering/corrosion etc.

Personally I will MOT any car I have regardless of whether it's pre '60 or not for my own peace of mind. I find it a good check on the vehicles state of health. If you use a car every day you may not notice a gradual brake fade until it's too late!

[MrIan]

Well with regards to MOTs it is only relevant on the day it's issued. On saying that even then from what I've heard it's meaningless. Ive just heard today that a friend of my father in laws has just had his car passed with leaking front and rear shock absorbers, also I know of cars that have passed with broken drop links on the suspension and unbalanced brakes. This is all in the past 12 months from different testing stations. So to think an MOT means your car is ok doesn't stand. A good honest and trustworthy garage to look after your car is better if you're unsure on how safe it is.

[SteveClem]

Previous threads here and elsewhere suggest there won't be a consensus on the MOT debate!