Quick sale resulting in retention plate help

[Daci1983]

Hi, due to unforeseen circumstances I was forced into changing my car very quickly. I had to start looking on Thursday (16th June) and agreed a deal with a dealer on Friday (17th June). As part of the deal they said they'd want the sale done within the week so agreed to complete on Wednesday (22nd June). My current vehicle going in part-ex has a private plate which I have asked to keep. What is the process that needs to be gone through in order to transfer ownership of my current car to the dealer, while also putting my existing registration plate onto retention? The tax on my current car expires on 30th June which also might add to the difficulty. All I have been told to do so far is to take a cheque for £105 made payable to DVLA and to take my current V5 and existing insurance documents in Monday morning (20th June), which gives them 2 days before the exchange.

Any information on what process be happen will be much appreciated as I'm concerned on how I will retain the current registration mark?

Kind regards,
Daci

[Ozzie Osmond]

When you sell a car the registration number transfers automatically to the now owner/keeper in DVLA's records. The new owner is the only person they recognise as having any rights to the number.

The process of putting your number on retention starts off nice and quickly but isn't complete until the new V5 is issued - which can take 3 weeks or more.

So you've landed yourself in a tricky situation. the best you can do is make clear in a written contract signed with the dealer that the number plate remains yours and they must do everyhting necessary to make sure it is transferred to you.

[Daci1983]

Thank you for your response to my question. I have already signed a V317 at the dealership under section 2 and I think then that they are going to get my mark onto retention first, but that would suggest I will then need to sign a new V5 once it has been issued, but can dealerships get a new V5 issued within 2 days? If they can then I can sign the new V5 on Wednesday?

[S1mon.]

I would send off the v5 etc to get the plate on retention now, let the dealer have the car on the date you agreed and tell them you will pass on the new V5 when you get it back with the original reg on. Do not give the dealer the V5 with your plate on it, I doubt you will see it again.

[Daci1983]

It's a proper Hyundai dealership I am dealing with so I think they will have a reputation to uphold and shouldn't try to trick me out of my private mark. It was also them who put the wheels in motion in getting it onto retention so I have confidence in them getting it done, but as long as I don't sign over the V5 with my old mark on it then would I be right in thinking there is no risk of my losing the plate? Can the dealership get a new V5 document issued within 2 days if they present all the documents at the local DVLA office?

Thanks.

[S1mon.]

No, If the dealer applied for a new V5, DVLA will write to you letting you know this and you will have a number of weeks to reply.
Quickest would be 4 weeks.

[Terminator X]

PITA I'm afraid ... you shouldn't sell a car just before or indeed part way through a retention transfer. You're running the risk that the new owner keeps it. My BIL sold a car with a FAZ plate that he wanted to keep, new owner agreed albeit a few weeks later when BIL checked, the guy had already sold it on!

TX.

[Zwoelf]

Daci1983 said:

Can the dealership get a new V5 document issued within 2 days if they present all the documents at the local DVLA office?

No, the new V5C is sent to the registered keeper - you. They're stuck with your old car until you give that to them and fill out the yellow slip on the new V5C.

1st stage of the retention is the car the number is being retained from is assigned an age-relate plate, and a V948 is issued (authorisation to have number plates made) - along with a tax disc displaying the age-related number to replace the now-retained one on the car, and a re-produced MoT certificate. This bit usually happens inside a week, DVLA quote 7 working days.

2nd stage is the V778 Retention Certificate is sent to the Grantee (the person in whose name the plate was retained - unless anyone else was appointed on the application form, that's the current registered keeper, i..e you). This usually happens within 10 working days. At this point you can then begin the process of assigning that mark to th ecar you've bought, once you're in possession of that car's V5C in your name, which having just bought the car, will normally be up to 3 weeks post handover - the Retention process will have generally have been completed by then.

3rd and final stage of the retention process is the V5C for your old car arriving with you in the age-related plate. This you take to the dealer who has your car so they can finally move it on in the trade - or sell it themselves if they are retailing your PX. They may have sold it very quickly after you chopped it in, but will be unable to release it until they have the V5C. At this stage you and the dealer sign the yellow section of the V5C and YOU send it off to notify DVLA of the sale to the trade - which keeps things happy in terms of the new Continuous Insurance rules.

So it's not in any dealer's interest to either fk about with or "lose" V5Cs when a Retention or Cherished Transfer is under way as it slows down their cashflow either way. Dealers hate the things, but are still far more competent at them than Joe Public, motivated by getting their money as they are. Once JP has their new car, they do take their sweet time getting the V5C back - or better still claim they've never had it and then have to apply for a replacement V5C, which takes a month - with used car values dropping a few hundred a month, sometimes a lot more, you can work out why dealers prefer to administer and control the process as far as possible.