How do I buy a car with the new tax rules?

[buzzer]

In the past it was easy.... Rock up to the sellers house, part with the cash, and if the car was taxed and Mot'ed a quick call to my insurance and I would be on my way....

Now you don't seem to be able to sell it with tax on, how does that work?

[Road2Ruin]

The tax will still be valid on the day of purchase so go home turn computer on and tax it using code on v5

[Rtig]

Wrong. The vehicle is no longer taxed from point of sale therefore if you get pulled over driving home you will be driving without tax. You need to ring up and tax the vehicle BEFORE you can legally drive it

www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes

Google isn't that hard to use!

[Brigand]

Strictly speaking you should call up the tax office and get it taxed over the phone whilst sat in your new car before setting off home, but the reality is even if the previous owner went straight inside at the deal's conclusion and "untaxed" it, it would still be on the system long enough for you to get home, assuming you live fairly close.

So business as usual really, but to be 100% legal you'd need to get it taxed over the phone or online via your smartphone before you set off home.

[xRIEx]

Brigand said:

Strictly speaking you should call up the tax office and get it taxed over the phone whilst sat in your new car before setting off home, but the reality is even if the previous owner went straight inside at the deal's conclusion and "untaxed" it, it would still be on the system long enough for you to get home, assuming you live fairly close.

So business as usual really, but to be 100% legal you'd need to get it taxed over the phone or online via your smartphone before you set off home.

This.

[Rtig]

Fine until you are involved in a crash/get pulled over for some reason and the vehicle isn't taxed. Really worth it for a couple of minutes to tax it straight away? You've got to do it anyway so what inconvenience is it to do it there and then? Far less so than a fine for driving an untaxed vehicle!

[DaveH23]

Brigand said:

Strictly speaking you should call up the tax office and get it taxed over the phone whilst sat in your new car before setting off home, but the reality is even if the previous owner went straight inside at the deal's conclusion and "untaxed" it, it would still be on the system long enough for you to get home, assuming you live fairly close.

So business as usual really, but to be 100% legal you'd need to get it taxed over the phone or online via your smartphone before you set off home.

In other words exactly the same as the insurance.

[Osinjak]

buzzer said:

In the past it was easy.... Rock up to the sellers house, part with the cash, and if the car was taxed and Mot'ed a quick call to my insurance and I would be on my way....

Now you don't seem to be able to sell it with tax on, how does that work?

You use the code on the new keeper's supplement to pay for your tax online before you drive it away. That's what we're doing tomorrow when we pick up my frau's new car.

[ambuletz]

I don't see why they don't just give you a 7-day grace period to tax it from the moment the seller untaxes it.

[marshalla]

Rtig said:

Wrong. The vehicle is no longer taxed from point of sale therefore if you get pulled over driving home you will be driving without tax. You need to ring up and tax the vehicle BEFORE you can legally drive it

www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes

Google isn't that hard to use!

Wrong. Tax is cancelled when the vehicle is sold AND DVLA are notified of change of keeper. The primary legislation isn't that hard to find.

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/26/schedu...

[ianwayne]

To be 100% legal, you need to tax it before you drive it, after the change of owner. But, DVLA don't ask for the time of day you buy a car, only to declare the date when the V5 is posted to them, so I think you'd be fine to drive it home as long as you tax it online the next day. As said previously, it'll show up as taxed on any ANPR check for several days (or maybe even longer) until the document arrives and is processed at DVLA.

[xRIEx]

marshalla said:

Rtig said:

Wrong. The vehicle is no longer taxed from point of sale therefore if you get pulled over driving home you will be driving without tax. You need to ring up and tax the vehicle BEFORE you can legally drive it

www.gov.uk/government/news/vehicle-tax-changes

Google isn't that hard to use!

Wrong. Tax is cancelled when the vehicle is sold AND DVLA are notified of change of keeper. The primary legislation isn't that hard to find.

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/26/schedu...

It may not be hard to find but it's impossible to read - could you point out the relevant passages?

The previous link you're decrying was pretty clear:

"From 1 October, when you buy a vehicle, the vehicle tax will no longer be transferred with the vehicle. You will need to get new vehicle tax before you can use the vehicle."

[Patrick Bateman]

Having just done it. Phone them up and use the document reference number from the New Keeper's Details supplement of the V5, doesn't take long.

[toerag]

So you cant just, test drive it home?

[anonymous-user]

xRIEx said:

It may not be hard to find but it's impossible to read - could you point out the relevant passages?

...

The amendments to section 19 of the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994. That has not yet been updated on the government website, but it now looks like this:

19 Rebates

(1) If any of the rebate conditions is satisfied in relation to a vehicle in respect of which a vehicle licence is in force, the relevant person is entitled to receive (by way of rebate of duty paid on the licence) 2 the relevant amount from the Secretary of State

...

(3) The rebate conditions are as follows—

(a) to (e) [omitted]

(f) the vehicle has been sold or disposed of and the particulars prescribed by regulations under section 22(1)(d) have been furnished in relation to it in accordance with the regulations...

[buzzer]

OK, so I rock up, buy the car, call my insurance, insure the car, call the DVLA to tax it... How long does it take the insurance company to tell the DVLA the vehicle is now insured?

in the past its been up to a week for it to appear on the database at the DVLA. is it instant now?

[xRIEx]

buzzer said:

OK, so I rock up, buy the car, call my insurance, insure the car, call the DVLA to tax it... How long does it take the insurance company to tell the DVLA the vehicle is now insured?

in the past its been up to a week for it to appear on the database at the DVLA. is it instant now?

No, but it's no longer a requirement for the vehicle to be insured when you tax it, I assume in order to facilitate this change in tax process.

[buzzer]

xRIEx said:

buzzer said:

OK, so I rock up, buy the car, call my insurance, insure the car, call the DVLA to tax it... How long does it take the insurance company to tell the DVLA the vehicle is now insured?

in the past its been up to a week for it to appear on the database at the DVLA. is it instant now?

No, but it's no longer a requirement for the vehicle to be insured when you tax it, I assume in order to facilitate this change in tax process.

Thanks, that little bit of information completely passed me by! I had read the sites but not spotted that !

easy then!

[xRIEx]

Breadvan72 said:

xRIEx said:

It may not be hard to find but it's impossible to read - could you point out the relevant passages?

...

The amendments to section 19 of the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994. That has not yet been updated on the government website, but it now looks like this:

19 Rebates

(1) If any of the rebate conditions is satisfied in relation to a vehicle in respect of which a vehicle licence is in force, the relevant person is entitled to receive (by way of rebate of duty paid on the licence) 2 the relevant amount from the Secretary of State

...

(3) The rebate conditions are as follows—

(a) to (e) [omitted]

(f) the vehicle has been sold or disposed of and the particulars prescribed by regulations under section 22(1)(d) have been furnished in relation to it in accordance with the regulations...

Thanks, but I still don't understand what states the tax status is changed at point of notifying the DVLA. Everything else I've seen states it is effective at point of sale.

[anonymous-user]

That follows from section 19. A vehicle must be taxed, but the tax is not personalised. The vehicle remains taxed until the keeper notifies DVLA of the sale. At that point the (now former) keeper obtains a rebate, and the vehicle must be taxed anew. It is worth noting that Government websites do not always give accurate summaries of what legislation actually provides.