Impounded car problems

Wig

In the absence of another friend giving you both a lift out there. Here's what I would do...

Either go there and each drive each others car back, they are unlikely to stop your car as there is probably no computer mistake flagging up your car. In the unlikely event they do stop **his** car again, they can check that you have a licence and insurance to drive it. It would be best if you take your licence and insurance documents with you to show this on demand. Tell him not to stop if they blue light you to stop driving his car.

Or....... If he is not insured to drive your car on his policy under DOC Driving other cars.... and you don't want him to, then each of you drive your own respective cars back. and hope he doesn't get stopped again

Or....... at the very least, remove the car from the compound and drive it to a place you can park it, whilst you sort out the rest of this mess without incurring £20 a day charges and if necessary walk back to collect your car.

Make sure you get there before noon, I would say before 11am to be safe, to collect the car without any £20 additional costs. After noon they will add £20.

Wig wrote: »

I would also like to ask, as it was 4pm, the DVLA would have been open, did they not phone the DVLA on the spot, and your friend able to also speak to the DVLA (using police phone) to ask them !!!!!! is going on? Your friend should have insisted they did this.

Did they do this?

Parva

Hmmm, when I select a change of address and state that I have an old paper licence I'm being asked for a payment of £20 using the DVLA's online site. I shall investigate further.

System

DVLA online appears to be down at the moment

Gene_Hunt_2

paddedjohn wrote: »

how can they be allowed to impound the car for not having a license? surely its still taxed and insured to be left on a public highway.

Section 165 RTA

Wig wrote: »

If you collect the car tomorrow before 12 you pay 117
after 12 Sunday and before 12 on Monday it will be 129

£150 recovery plus £20 per day.

thenudeone

mikey72 wrote: »

They expire every 10 years now.

AFAIK you are still licenced to drive until your 70th birthday (normally) even if the photo expires. The dates on the BACK of the licence are the dates when you are licensed to drive.

mark5

My guess is that there was confusion in the phone conversation between the dvla and the op's friend.

On informing the dvla that his licence never arrived they probably cancelled his current licence because it was lost/stolen etc.

He's then not banned but doesn't hold a valid licence to drive. Normally lost/stolen licences are reported on the application for a new one so the replacement is issued as the previous one is cancelled but not in this case.

I don't see how someone on the phone in the dvla could then just issue a new licence with a change of address without some sort of paper trail. When I worked at the dvla they would have needed to check the microfilm records of the last application to check the error was with the dvla before issuing a replacement licence.

sarahg1969

mikey72 wrote: »

They expire every 10 years now.

No; only the photocard expires. The licence remains valid until you turn 70, or any other such date that's specified on the licence.

Nilrem

Parva wrote: »

And just to reiterate, who said that his renewed licence went to any address? Fact: Updating your address on an old-style paper licence requires you to pay a fee of £20 and either send a passport sized photo or provide details of a valid passport where the DVLA can use the scanned picture from.

If no fee and photo or passport details weren't sent along with the old paper-style licence then you aren't going to get a new one.

That has changed in the past 2-3 years or so, as when I realised my licence had our old postcode (it got changed a few years before), I ran the DVLA and was informed that as the address was incorrect the change to a photo card licence would be free as it was a change of address that was necessitating the photo card.

All I had to do was send the paperwork for change of address and the photo - mind you they sent it back as "no fee enclosed" at first, which required another call to the DVLA to confirm and then a cover note pointing out that the address had changed.

bigjl

As mikey72 correctly stated, your phoecard licence expires every twn years and you can't drive till you renew the photocard.

There have been many threads about this subject and the internet know-alls all said that there was no offence commited as it was only the phoocard that had expired but the licence runs till they are 70.

I take it these same know it alls will be posting that the police have acted illegally as the licence was valid all along.

Sorry about the OP's mates situation but I have no sympathy, you have ten years to figure out when the photocard needs renewed, and the old, mover house, not my fault ecuses don't wash, it's like saying you got caught with no insurance because you forgot top renew it, that is a pity but the offence was still commited.

If your mate wants his car then make the trip, unless he doesn't want it back, up to him really.

Wig

bigjl wrote: »

As mikey72 correctly stated, your phoecard licence expires every twn years and you can't drive till you renew the photocard.

There have been many threads about this subject and the internet know-alls all said that there was no offence commited as it was only the phoocard that had expired but the licence runs till they are 70.

I take it these same know it alls will be posting that the police have acted illegally as the licence was valid all along.

Sorry about the OP's mates situation but I have no sympathy, you have ten years to figure out when the photocard needs renewed, and the old, mover house, not my fault ecuses don't wash, it's like saying you got caught with no insurance because you forgot top renew it, that is a pity but the offence was still commited.

If your mate wants his car then make the trip, unless he doesn't want it back, up to him really.

At what point did you decide to ignore that the OPs friend had an old paper licence not a new photo one which was 10 years old?