Displaying car tax

Twin_woo

My car has been SORN for the last 10 months. I paid for my car tax over the phone on Monday and was told by DVLA the tax disc would take up to 5 working days to arrive. Last night my car was parked on the road and this morning I have a fixed penalty attached by the local police for not displaying a valid road tax disc.

It gives me the option to pay £100 fixed or take the matter to court. Is there no way I can just produce the valid tax disc when it arrives? If not, and it goes to court, presumably there will be no case to answer but will I have to pay any court costs? Seems a total waste of time for all.

phill99

Of course there is a case to answer. The offence is not displaying a valid tax disc. This is different from not having a tax disc.

Until you have a tax disc, it shouldn't be parked on the public highway.

If you ho to court, you will have the fine as well as costs!

Rover_Driver

There is a 14 day grace period for the display of the licence after it is applied for. As you applied by phone, you may need to get confirmation from the DVLA to show when they received your application.

Quentin

Rover_Driver wrote: »

There is a 14 day grace period for the display of the licence after it is applied for. As you applied by phone, you may need to get confirmation from the DVLA to show when they received your application.

That only applies when you renew.

You have to leave the old disc on the screen to avoid being done for failure to display.

Looks like the op didn't renew, and will lose if they go to court

Rover_Driver

Quentin wrote: »

That only applies when you renew.

You have to leave the old disc on the screen to avoid being done for failure to display.

Looks like the op didn't renew, and will lose if they go to court

It also applies when 'a relevant declaration applying to the vehicle, ceases to be in force' - s.33A (1),Vehicles Excise & Registration Act 1994, introduced by s.188, Finance Act 2013.

The 'relevant declaration' is SORN, which ceases to be in force when a licence is taken out, and the 14 days grace for displaying that licence is from when the application for it is received. Which is why the OP needs to be able to confirm when the application was received.

System

It is interesting that there is no definition of 'relevant declaration' in either VERA or the Finance Act

Rover_Driver

!!!!!! wrote: »

It is interesting that there is no definition of 'relevant declaration' in either VERA or the Finance Act

'there is a relevant declaration applying to a vehicle if the particulars and declaration required to be furnished and made by regulations under section 22(1D) have been furnished and made in relation to the vehicle in accordance with the regulations'


s.33(A),(2),(a), Vehicles Excise & Registration Act 1994.

force_ten

it seems pretty ironic as the need to display a tax disc will be abolished at the end of the month

Quentin

force_ten wrote: »

it seems pretty ironic as the need to display a tax disc will be abolished at the end of the month

Not as prettily ironic as it was for the hundreds that died on Armistice day before 11.00!

pheonix254

V.E.R.A. 1994 was amended by s.147 the Finance Act 2008:

In section 33 of VERA 1994 (not exhibiting licence), after subsection (1A) insert—

“(1B) A person is not guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (1A) by using or keeping a vehicle on a public road during any of the 5 working days following the time when a licence or nil licence for the vehicle, or a relevant declaration applying to the vehicle, ceases to be in force, if an application for a licence or nil licence for or in respect of the vehicle to run from that time has been received before that time.

(1C) In subsection (1B) “working day” means any day other than—

(a) a Saturday or Sunday, or

(b) a day which is Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in any part of the United Kingdom.

(1D) For the purposes of subsection (1B)—

(a) there is a relevant declaration applying to a vehicle if the particulars and declaration required to be furnished and made by regulations under section 22(1D) have been furnished and made in relation to the vehicle in accordance with the regulations, and

(b) the relevant declaration ceases to be in force if, after the particulars and declaration have been furnished and made—

(i) the vehicle is used or kept on a public road (otherwise than under a trade licence), or

(ii) the period of 12 months beginning with the day on which the particulars and declaration were furnished and made expires.”

NOTE: Finance act 2013 my have updated this

This would indicate that IF you renewed the tax whilst the vehicle still had a valid SORN in effect, you get 5 days to display. If the SORN had lapsed and you bought the tax disc the next day, you're guilty of the offense of failing to display the tax disc. If it hadn't lapsed, you aren't. (I'm not a lawyer).

I suggest you head over to pepipoo and ask the question on that forum - but you may have just been extremely unlucky in this instance. The offense is nothing to do with whether you have tax, it's all to do with displaying the piece of paper.

Rover_Driver

pheonix254 wrote: »

V.E.R.A. 1994 was amended by s.147 the Finance Act 2008:

And that was replaced by s.188, Finance Act 2013.