New Tax = Insurance Law..GRRRR

[stoocake]

Bit frustrated this morning.

My car insurance expires at midnight tonight. It has 9 months tax on it. I've just paid £400 to get it through MOT and the day after doing so, the engine dropped its guts...I think the water pump is shattered...coolant all fell out at once and a nasty grinding noise from lower O/S of engine.

I'm not sure how catastrophic it is because a) my trolley jack is broken (a week after paying £60 to get it repaired) and b) I'm struggling with a really bad case of bronchitis (doesn't go well with asthma), so really don't have it in me to get under the car and find out at the moment.

So legally, while the car is taxed, it has to be insured. Is there any grace period for this new, ridiculous law? Or do I have to chase around and SORN it just so I dont have to insure it before I find out whether the engine is truly gubbed?

Sorry for long post...just having a bad week and need to vent :-P

[Sifly]

why don't you cash the tax in before the end of the month, and just SORN the car until you know what you will be doing with it. The most you should loose is a months tax. Failing that, insure it on a monthly payment option so that you can cancel your payments if you find the cars not repairable. If you pay your insurance in one go, and then cancel it, they will give you next to nothing back.

I'm sure there are other options to?.......

If it's any consolation, I'm having a ste week as well!!

Edited by Sifly on Wednesday 7th September 13:24

[Laughingman21]

Is it parked on the road or on private land?

[98elise]

Or change the insurance to laid up. Last time I did this it was peanuts.

[stoocake]

It's on a private driveway so I'll just SORN it I think. Not thinking that clearly with the cocktail of painkillers, drowsiness and antibiotics they've put me on but seems to make the most sense.

Just a pain in the arse. Had a similar problem with a motorbike lately - bought a bike to spur me to do my test, but because it's taxed I've had to insure it, but because I've not done my test, very few people will insure me and costs are unreasonable (makes no sense eh? considering I can't use the bike...safest bet ever).

[Jasandjules]

98elise said:

Or change the insurance to laid up. Last time I did this it was peanuts.

This.

[stoocake]

Thanks, I'll check that out. It means taking out another policy which I'm a bit reluctant to do until I know what's happening (got 4 vehicles so the fewer the complications, the better).

I've just filled out the SORN form online, which they want me to print off and send to them along with tax disk. Will they have registered the SORN already, or will they not do it until they receive the form? I'm at my dad's so I'll have to get him to drop me back at mine to get the tax disk today if so.

[jatinder]

If it helps, my car was insured for three months before August on Scorn without tax or MOT (in the garage not using it)

I didn't get anything from the DVLA.

[confused_buyer]

You can have a car insured but not taxed, but not taxed and not insured.

[stoocake]

That's the problem...insurance expires but tax doesn't.

[Kozy]

I've had a taxed but uninsured broken car on my driveway for about 3 months now.

The DVLA are being as effecient as ever because I haven't heard squat from them yet. I wouldn't worry about it TBH.

[stoocake]

Kozy said:

I wouldn't worry about it TBH.

You're right, I probably shouldn't worry, I just seem to be unlucky with this sort of thing. e.g. I live in the quiet part at the back of the back of the back of a massive housing estate - very little traffic and yet I took my old scooter (Honda C90...not an amplified hairdryer ;-) ) up the street (300 yards perhaps) just to test brakes before I booked it's MOT and a police car just happened to be passing...no tax, no insurance, no MOT. He let me off and was perfectly reasonable about it but I'm terrified of taking any risks at all these days.

[*Al*]

Kozy said:

I've had a taxed but uninsured broken car on my driveway for about 3 months now.

The DVLA are being as effecient as ever because I haven't heard squat from them yet. I wouldn't worry about it TBH.

This ^ i haven't heard of anyone yet being done?

[Durzel]

As above, have had a car half-heartedly (don't really want to sell it) for sale since the beginning of June, only insured on a day cover very periodically to give it a run or to give test drives. It is otherwise fully legal - taxed, MOT, etc.

Was worried initially that I would come a cropper with this Law but haven't heard a peep from the DVLA.