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Car clamped for no tax as new buyer - Crazy DVLA system
3:15 pm = I bought a car from private seller!
3:37 pm = I immediately paid tax at the post office which was at 15 mins walking distance.!
3:36 pm = Car clamp time.
3:55 pm = I returned back to car after paying tax and see that it is clamped.
Next day around 11 am = Car clamp removed 2 hours after paying 100 pounds.
My Story:!
I bought a car from a private seller for 700 pounds. I immediately tried to pay tax online. DVLA refused online tax payment giving a message that they cannot verify my insurance details (obviously because I just bought insurance minutes before and online system takes at-least one day to update).
Car tax was expired as the car was at seller's private land and he was planning to sell it.
I did not drive the car as it was not taxed. I immediately walked to the post office to pay tax (post office was 15 mins walk). I paid tax and returned back to the car and see that it is clamped. I made dozens of calls and each time it is going to answering machine that there are 15+ people in the queue and leave a message with my phone number, car registration number, etc and they will call me back. I did not receive any call back. After many attempts, I finally got connected at 4:40 pm, they said they don't see my tax details online and post office payment record can take up to 5 days to reach their database. I insisted a lot that I have all the evidence that I just bought it and tax receipt, etc. They said, they can only remove clamp if I pay 100 pounds + car tax again (as their system does not see post office tax payment). They also said that clamp cannot be removed today as they will close soon and I have to wait until tomorrow.
Seller did not take responsibility for clamp as he sold it. Car was outside seller place and I was very far from home. I spent more money to reach home without car.
The same day I also did many calls to DVLA and explained the situation but they keep on repeating "Our system shows car is not taxed, so I must pay 100 pounds + tax again". Next day early morning, I again called DVLA and somehow they check post office record and confirmed that yes tax is paid.!
Now DVLA said, post office tax receipt time is 3:37 pm and clamp time is 3:36 pm. Since it was clamped 1 min before tax receipt, I must pay 100 pounds to remove clamp. I argued a lot that post office was 15 minutes walk and car is not small enough that I put it in my jeans pocket until payment is done at post office. But she was not listening and was trained to repeat just one sentence that "car was clamped 1 minute before tax so I must pay 100 pounds to remove clamp".
With great frustration and anger, I finally paid 100 pounds over the phone to clamping company. I went again to seller place and 2 hours after that car clamp was removed and I brought car.!
I also realized that 4 different companies were involved in this entire process (1) Post Office to pay tax, (2) DVLA, (3) Vehicle Pound that manages payments for clamp release, and (4) a different company that put/remove clamp for vehicle pound. Strangely, they all don't share data with each other in real-time. When I paid 100 pounds to vehicle pound, I asked to remove clamp immediately but they said, they cannot because they contracted clamping thing to another company and they can take up to the entire day to remove the clamp. But luckily clamp was removed after 2 hours in my case. !!
I lost 100 pounds but sharing my story so that people are aware of the crappy DVLA system.
3:37 pm = I immediately paid tax at the post office which was at 15 mins walking distance.!
3:36 pm = Car clamp time.
3:55 pm = I returned back to car after paying tax and see that it is clamped.
Next day around 11 am = Car clamp removed 2 hours after paying 100 pounds.
My Story:!
I bought a car from a private seller for 700 pounds. I immediately tried to pay tax online. DVLA refused online tax payment giving a message that they cannot verify my insurance details (obviously because I just bought insurance minutes before and online system takes at-least one day to update).
Car tax was expired as the car was at seller's private land and he was planning to sell it.
I did not drive the car as it was not taxed. I immediately walked to the post office to pay tax (post office was 15 mins walk). I paid tax and returned back to the car and see that it is clamped. I made dozens of calls and each time it is going to answering machine that there are 15+ people in the queue and leave a message with my phone number, car registration number, etc and they will call me back. I did not receive any call back. After many attempts, I finally got connected at 4:40 pm, they said they don't see my tax details online and post office payment record can take up to 5 days to reach their database. I insisted a lot that I have all the evidence that I just bought it and tax receipt, etc. They said, they can only remove clamp if I pay 100 pounds + car tax again (as their system does not see post office tax payment). They also said that clamp cannot be removed today as they will close soon and I have to wait until tomorrow.
Seller did not take responsibility for clamp as he sold it. Car was outside seller place and I was very far from home. I spent more money to reach home without car.
The same day I also did many calls to DVLA and explained the situation but they keep on repeating "Our system shows car is not taxed, so I must pay 100 pounds + tax again". Next day early morning, I again called DVLA and somehow they check post office record and confirmed that yes tax is paid.!
Now DVLA said, post office tax receipt time is 3:37 pm and clamp time is 3:36 pm. Since it was clamped 1 min before tax receipt, I must pay 100 pounds to remove clamp. I argued a lot that post office was 15 minutes walk and car is not small enough that I put it in my jeans pocket until payment is done at post office. But she was not listening and was trained to repeat just one sentence that "car was clamped 1 minute before tax so I must pay 100 pounds to remove clamp".
With great frustration and anger, I finally paid 100 pounds over the phone to clamping company. I went again to seller place and 2 hours after that car clamp was removed and I brought car.!
I also realized that 4 different companies were involved in this entire process (1) Post Office to pay tax, (2) DVLA, (3) Vehicle Pound that manages payments for clamp release, and (4) a different company that put/remove clamp for vehicle pound. Strangely, they all don't share data with each other in real-time. When I paid 100 pounds to vehicle pound, I asked to remove clamp immediately but they said, they cannot because they contracted clamping thing to another company and they can take up to the entire day to remove the clamp. But luckily clamp was removed after 2 hours in my case. !!
I lost 100 pounds but sharing my story so that people are aware of the crappy DVLA system.
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Comments
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You said "car was at seller's private land". Had you moved it onto the road before taxing it?
So far, you've only paid the release fee. There may be a fine in the pipeline.0 -
No, they didn't. Insurance hasn't been checked on tax purchase - online or via POs - for the last six years.DVLA refused online tax payment giving a message that they cannot verify my insurance details
Whether you drove it or not is irrelevant. Was your car parked on the road when it was clamped?I did not drive the car as it was not taxed. I immediately walked to the post office to pay tax (post office was 15 mins walk). I paid tax and returned back to the car and see that it is clamped.
The change of keeper is irrelevant, since the previous keeper's tax wasn't cancelled on keeper change. Your car was clamped because it was parked on the road without tax.0 -
DVLA refused online tax payment giving a message that they cannot verify my insurance details (obviously because I just bought insurance minutes before and online system takes at-least one day to update).
Funny done last three insurances online outside sellers and showed up immediately. Or i wouldnt have been able to tax online directly after.
You were done because car was untaxed on a public highway.0 -
How can it be clamped if it was on private land? I'm smelling the rich aroma of bs.0
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Did you brought the car or bought? Not at all helpful but very in keeping with this forums ethos.0
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worried_jim wrote: »How can it be clamped if it was on private land? I'm smelling the rich aroma of bs.
They cannot immobilise or remove a vehicle within the curtilage of a dwelling over a VED offence. (Driveway, garage, front & back garden). There may well be private land that doesn't fall within this, e.g. the area outside a workshop or a field separated by a fence. I suspect a side plot of grass separated by a hedge or fence from the house would be fair game.
However the tale does seem to fall at the first hurdle of not being able to tax for no insurance, you only need an MOT to tax a vehicle (if it is over 3 years old)
Apart from that, it is a perfectly plausible story, and just the sort of thing that happens to me, I can well imagine the DVLA coming round to clamp a car whilst I was waiting in a queue to tax it.I want to go back to The Olden Days, when every single thing that I can think of was better.....
(except air quality and Medical Science
)0 -
You said "car was at seller's private land". Had you moved it onto the road before taxing it?
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Yes, after sale, car was move out of private space and parked outside seller's place - in the street.
I tried to pay tax online but system refused for which I also have a screenshot. The exact message from online system is below:
Unable to use service
Sorry, we are unable to check your vehicle insurance details because your are taxing the vehicle as a new keeper.
To tax your vehicle please take your proof of insurance, MOT and V5C or V5C/2 to Post Office branch that deals with tax.
Anyone who doubt this online refusal should do their on research on this topic. Trade sellers somehow pay online but from private seller, it is not possible to pay tax online in Northern Ireland. However, tax renewals are possible online in future because then your insurance details are updated in their database. As a new buyer, insurance details take couple of days to update in their database.0 -
No, they didn't. Insurance hasn't been checked on tax purchase - online or via POs - for the last six years.
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I tried to pay tax online but system refused for which I also have a screenshot. The exact message from online system is below - You can copy this text and search on google and do your own research.
Unable to use service
Sorry, we are unable to check your vehicle insurance details because your are taxing the vehicle as a new keeper.
To tax your vehicle please take your proof of insurance, MOT and V5C or V5C/2 to Post Office branch that deals with tax.
I live in Northern Ireland but I don't think this could be the reason. Anyone who doubt this online refusal should do their on research on this topic. As a new buyer in Northern Ireland, post office is the only option as insurance details take couple of days to update in their database.0 -
Funny done last three insurances online outside sellers and showed up immediately. Or i wouldnt have been able to tax online directly after.
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Well, I bought insurance from 1st central. I don't know if it is because of insurance company. Normally, trade sellers can pay tax online somehow but in case of private seller, post office is the only option. I live in Northern Ireland (NI) and I don't know if this is because of NI but I don't think it should be the case.0 -
Well, I bought insurance from 1st central. I don't know if it is because of insurance company. Normally, trade sellers can pay tax online somehow but in case of private seller, post office is the only option. I live in Northern Ireland (NI) and I don't know if this is because of NI but I don't think it should be the case.
yes the law is different in NI
in the UK insurance is not checked when taxing vehicle , in the words of a DVLA rep i spoke to "we leave this to the police"
in NI insurance MUST be shown when taxing0
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