Appeal Letter

[Malaka]

Hi this is my first post here. I've received an £80 penalty for not taxing my vehicle since 28/12/07. That is simply because I wrote my vehicle off in an accident and I requested the tax refund using the V14 form. The trouble is I don't remember if I filled in the SORN section. I've written a polite letter of appeal but not sent it yet... any advice? What are my chances of getting off? I haven't admitted not filling in the SORN section but apologised in advance for any unintentional errors in the information I've provided. I told them that I couldn't possibly gain by not providing the correct information as I still have no car and no insurance payout as yet.

[buzby]

If you 'wrote your vehicle off' (or your insurer did) then the appropriate section on the V5 form needed to be filled out and returned also. By applying for a refund of tax, you leave yourself open for this unwarranted action under the continuous registration process. If you still have the vehicle in your driveway, then all you can really do is write and explain that it cannot be taxed as it also cannot be MoT'd, and hope they reconsider.

[Malaka]

Oh right. At the time I needed to give my V5 to my insurer to carry out the claim. They told me to fill in section 9 (I think) before I handed it in which I duly did. The vehicle has not been in my hands since the accident.

[buzby]

Excellent - take a copy of the letter and forward it to your insurer, it is then their responsibility to arrange for the documentation to be processed. Tell the DVLA that it was an insurance write off, you claimed on the unused tax and your insurer scrapped it.

Tell your insurer that as the DVLA are now pursuing you, would they kindly resolve the issue or pay the fine.

[Malaka]

Thanks for the advice I will definitely be in touch with my insurance with this matter because I have a feeling it is them who have cocked it up. I've just read this section on the DVLA website but how was I to know that in order to discharge my liability I had to write to the DVLA giving the date I passed the vehicle to the insurance company?.........

'Under a special arrangement between DVLA and the insurance industry, your insurer may ask you for the whole registration document or certificate, which they will complete for you and send to the DVLA. If you decide to do this you should, in order to discharge your liability, write to DVLA Swansea SA99 1BR giving the date you passed the vehicle to the insurance company and details of their name and address.'


Hopefully now it will be just a matter of getting my insurance company to pass these details on to DVLA (in addition to me doing so!) so that they can sort it out between them.



Thanks again for your help

[buzby]

Priceless. I wouldn't enter into additional correspondence with the DVLA, if the Insurance Company didn't do the job, they can pay the fine or reimburse you. Expecting a Registered Keeper who has handed over a V5 to ADDITIONALLY make steps to tell the DVLA that the V5 is with their insurer is a crackpot notion!

[gwc1000]

But the owner shouldn't hand over the complete V5. It is the keeper's responsibility to inform DVLA of the change of ownership, not the insurance company's. The insurance company will not be liable to pay any fine. This is why DVLA say if you do hand over the whole V5 you should inform DVLA by letter for your own sake. Personally, Malaka I dont think you will succeed.