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Forgot to SORN....possibly?

Hi, new here.

Back in May this year I purchased a Rover Streetwise with front end damage. The car was not drivable and had been off road since the accident occured, which I believe was in December 2011 (so this time last year). The car was bought and I recovered it home on a trailer....where it has sat since.


I have slowly been repairing it in my spare time with the intention to sell it on. Last month (3rd October to be precise) I took out day insurance, and took the car for its MOT (pre-booked) which it passed first time. The car was then driven home and has sat since - I just need to source a bonnet.

The tax is about to expire on my own car, so I have decided to transfer the insurance to this Rover Streetwise and tax it so I can drive it while I find a bonnet and will probably sell in the new year.

After phoning up insurance company I have today gone on to the DVLA website to see if I am able to tax it. I did of course then realise that I need to wait till the start of the new month.
HOWEVER, it alerted me with this message:


Gap in licensing

There has been a gap in the licensing of the vehicle.

Previous Tax Disc or SORN declaration expired on:01 05 2012

It is an offence to be the registered keeper of a vehicle that is unlicensed and does not have SORN declared. You can apply for a tax disc from today's date, with a License Start Date of the 1st of this month. However, please note the above offence will still apply. DVLA's Continuous Registration Enforcement Centre may be in contact with the registered keeper regarding this gap in licensing.


!!!!! I'll be honest, although I THINK I declared the car SORN just after I purchased it, I can't be 100% certain. To the best of my knowledge I thought this car was on SORN. I certainly have not recieved anything from the DVLA to tell me other wise.

What should I do? It says that the Tax or SORN expired on 01/05/2012. I purchased the car on the 04/05/2012 (I have a signed for reciept).

Any advise would be great. As I say I think I did SORN it, but have no proof. I am worried I will now be fined from the all mightly DVLA.

Comments

  • paddedjohn
    paddedjohn Posts: 7,512 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture
    Ring them up and tell them that you declared sorn by post in May when you bought the car, its up to them to prove you didnt, not for you to prove you did.
    Be Alert..........Britain needs lerts.
  • Hasbeen
    Hasbeen Posts: 4,404 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    My advice is not to ring up and tell a HUMAN about this.
    I have heard a lot of these are not followed up as get lost in computer records.
    Tax at local post office.
    If you eventually get contacted then you can decide then what to do.
    The world is not ruined by the wickedness of the wicked, but by the weakness of the good. Napoleon
  • Hasbeen wrote: »
    Tax at local post office.

    And make sure they give you a disc starting tomorrow.

    You can tax a maximum of 2 days before the beginning of the month, and, seeing as it's the 30th November .....
  • ashy90
    ashy90 Posts: 6 Forumite
    edited 30 November 2012 at 11:18AM
    Bedsit_Bob wrote: »
    And make sure they give you a disc starting tomorrow.

    You can tax a maximum of 2 days before the beginning of the month, and, seeing as it's the 30th November .....

    Good to know - would much rather get the tax today for it to start tomorrow, than do it online and have to wait.

    Only thing is, the post office will require the insurance certificate I believe? Seeing as I only phoned them up yesterday to have the insurance transferred, I am not going to get the certificate for several days.

    It IS this morning showing as insured on the askMID website.
  • Can you not get them to email you a pdf of the certificate?
  • Just been to the post office, and they wasn't able to accept what I had printed off the Direct line website. They said it needs to state 'Certificate of Insurance'.

    I have just phoned up Direct Line and they are unable to send me an e-mail of the certificate. They can only send a fax - but only between the hours of 8 and 2pm, and not on weekends. So that is no use.

    Should I just try and tax it over the phone, or just do it online?
  • You could tax by phone/online, but you won't be able to drive it, until the disc arrives.
  • Yep thats fine and no problem with that.

    Just worried about the DVLA trying to fine me and perhaps trying to get me to pay for the tax back dated back to May?
  • I won't lie to you.

    That's certainly a possibility.
This discussion has been closed.
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