Car Tax - you can drive your vehicle without a disc for 5 days!

Wig

There is a 5 WORKING day (excludes Sat, Sun & Bank Hols) exemption from the requirement to DISPLAY/HAVE a valid tax disc/LICENCE, which has been in force since the 2008 Finance Act was commenced.

By buying online you have a valid licence, but you are not required to display the licence until after 5 working days - simples.

You also, as it happens, have an exemption from the requirement to have a licence, so this gives the processing department time to process your payment and officially record you as being licensed.

Wig

wealdroam wrote: »

StaceyAKelly, why did you not post a link in your first post?

Without a link it does appear that you could be making this up.

As mentioned earlier, there is nothing new here.
This information is on the reminder letter.

Here is the link to the DirectGov page you meant to supply.
It says...

I have not received the tax disc. Can I use the vehicle without the tax disc displayed?

When you apply for a tax disc online or by using our phone service you are able to legally continue to drive your vehicle for up to 5 days after the tax disc has expired while you wait for the new tax disc to arrive. This will only apply when you have applied for a new tax disc before the current one expires. You should continue to display the expired disc on your vehicle, until the new one arrives.

And the bit in red has no basis in the law as it is written..... No you don't have to do that.

paddedjohn

Tax expires 30 April 2011
If your tax disc expires on 30/04/2011 and you apply online or by phone before midnight on 30/04/2011, you can still use your vehicle until midnight 09/05/2011. When using your vehicle you must display your old tax disc. From 10/05/2011 you must display your new tax disc

TAKEN FROM THE DIRECT GOV WEBSITE.

Wig

paddedjohn wrote: »

Tax expires 30 April 2011
If your tax disc expires on 30/04/2011 and you apply online or by phone before midnight on 30/04/2011, you can still use your vehicle until midnight 09/05/2011. When using your vehicle you must display your old tax disc. From 10/05/2011 you must display your new tax disc

TAKEN FROM THE DIRECT GOV WEBSITE.

They are giving out incorrect information.

adamc260

Wild thought... why don't you just write it on a calendar somewhere and do it early.. I mean they do send you a reminder letter in plenty of time!

StaceyAKelly

adamc260 wrote: »

Wild thought... why don't you just write it on a calendar somewhere and do it early.. I mean they do send you a reminder letter in plenty of time!

or I could make an appointment with the HR department at work and ask them to pay me a few days early :-)

adamc260

StaceyAKelly wrote: »

or I could make an appointment with the HR department at work and ask them to pay me a few days early :-)

or you could budget through out the year, save a wee bit each month and then you'll have enough?

bigjl

StaceyAKelly wrote: »

So this is incorrect on the direct gov website then?

Since 1 September 2008, you can legally drive or keep your vehicle on the road up to five days from the end of the month without displaying a valid tax disc provided you have made your application online or by telephone before your current vehicle tax/SORN expires.

No the website is correct, as is the form you get to remind you to tax your car.

You also can't get nocked for failure to display if it falls in the five day period as there is a five day grace period.

This grace period is there to encourage us to retax online, i always renew online when possible as it means no queing at the PO and that fact i don't have to find the paperwork.

My current car has an expired tax disc and i am waiting for the new one to arrive.


Strider apparently knows more about this than the Dvla or Direct.gov website.

Adams1

I have a similar but slightly unique question: (hypothetical.)

I have a car that has been off the road and the tax has ran out. Lets say I want to put this car back on the road, and I apply for some tax online. The law that says its OK to drive without tax being displayed states that you can only do so if you renewed your tax disc before the old one expires. What about if you purchased the disc after the tax expired? Do you now have to wait for the new tax disc to come through?

bigjl

The only time you can drive without a valid disc is when renewing a currently taxed car by phone or online.

The requirement is for the car to have continuous taxation.

So if your car is untaxed then you can't drive it or park it on the road till the new disc arrives.

However it should show up as taxed on ANPR so the only offence you are likely be nicked for would be failing to display.