V5 form

[net0519]

Hello -- i just bought a used car only for the dealer to tell me there was no v5 form to it . fair enough i thought! he aggreed he would get a replacement but i wouldnt be able to drive the car untill the form came, so i rang the DVLA and they said i could nip into to my local office and pay £25 pound to register and tax it myself which would then mean i could drive it, so thats what i did and the local office computers and phone lines were down!!! so i left all the forms and details with them,
But the thing is today i rang the DVLA and on two seperate occasions have been told that the number plates on my car dont existe! the previous owner had a private reg on it and appararently the reg she had privatley dosent existe either. Have i got any legal footing to go to town on this dealer for selling me a totally unregistered car?

[patdavies]

Originally Posted by net0519

But the thing is today i rang the DVLA and on two seperate occasions have been told that the number plates on my car dont existe! the previous owner had a private reg on it and appararently the reg she had privatley dosent existe either. Have i got any legal footing to go to town on this dealer for selling me a totally unregistered car?

The person who will suffer is the person who owns the cherished number. It would appear that they have not put it onto retention or transferred it to another vehicle. If they had, then your car would have been given its old VRM again.

I suspect that the dealer has been had just as much. Which is why he hasn't got a V5.

The good news is that since you own the vehicle to which the cherished number is registered, you now own the number.

Apply to the DVLA for a new V5 with that number. Change your insurance (and the VRM plates) and Bob's your uncles. The original cherished number owner cannot now place it on retention as they cannot offer up the donor vehicle for inspection.

I can't understand how the cherished number can't exist. The vehicle must have been given a VRM originally - what happened to it.

Oh, BTW, you can't drive the car on the road until this is sorted out.

[net0519]

Thanks for replying - the reg number was once the cars original number plate and hopefully now its in the DVLAs hands they will advise and do what is best to get my car taxable and sorted out which they told me, its just so annoying that you feel so stupid to be in this posistion, my husband asked the seller if he had all the documentation and he replied yes - i tell you next time i will make them show me!
I did phone the dealer i bought it from and they now know whats happened and like you say he had the car and obviously didnt know the car hadnt been re registered after the number plate swap.
But if your on the ball as a car dealer you should check everythings ok with the documents before selling which he hadnt done and thats what makes me mad at him!
Anyway now its just a waiting game to see what happens and when i can get to drive my fab new car!
Thanks

[gwc1000]

Don't be too hard on the dealer, he wasn't to know. It was a private individual, not a trader who has turned both of you over.

[patdavies]

Originally Posted by gwc1000

Don't be too hard on the dealer, he wasn't to know. It was a private individual, not a trader who has turned both of you over.

I take your point that both have been screwed over by the previous owner; however, the dealer is a professional and should have HPI'd the vehicle to check for finance - that would surely have thrown up an issue with the VRM

[gwc1000]

Hi, pat. Not always. Some use HPI, some use Experian. The details don't always tally. For instance I have recently bought a vehicle from BCA (who use Experian) and it showed all clear. I sent the vehicle to sell to another auction who use HPI and it showed as a total loss, which it turned out to be true. The system is not infallible.

[patdavies]

Originally Posted by gwc1000

Hi, pat. Not always. Some use HPI, some use Experian. The details don't always tally. For instance I have recently bought a vehicle from BCA (who use Experian) and it showed all clear. I sent the vehicle to sell to another auction who use HPI and it showed as a total loss, which it turned out to be true. The system is not infallible.

Ouch! It that loss yours, or do you reclaim from BCA?

Fully take your point and understand. But surely with either, alarm bells will ring if you try and input what is, in fact, an invalid/non-existent VRM

[gwc1000]

Originally Posted by patdavies

Ouch! It that loss yours, or do you reclaim from BCA?

Fully take your point and understand. But surely with either, alarm bells will ring if you try and input what is, in fact, an invalid/non-existent VRM

Yes, but the OP says that the vehicle was showing it's original VRM. If the details on HPI or Experian were never updated (which often happens) when it had a private plate fitted, the car would show as all clear on it's original plate.

[gwc1000]

Originally Posted by patdavies

Ouch! It that loss yours, or do you reclaim from BCA?

BCA will refund the full purchase price, no question.

[patdavies]

Originally Posted by gwc1000

Yes, but the OP says that the vehicle was showing it's original VRM. If the details on HPI or Experian were never updated (which often happens) when it had a private plate fitted, the car would show as all clear on it's original plate.

But the OP also stated that DVLA told her that the number "didn't exist" (ie it was voided). I would worry about the reliability of either service if it came back OK on a voided VRM.

[gwc1000]

Yes, the number wouldn't "exist" at DVLA. My point is that it is possible that when the car was registered new it's details would be on both HPI and Experian under it's original VRM. When it went through a plate change to give it a cherished number there is a possibility that either HPI or Experian or even both didn't update their records. Thus although the original VRM is voided by DVLA the original number will still show up as ok when the dealer checks it out with whoever he uses to do a vehicle check. I have bought numerous cars that show up on HPI as having outstanding finance. However, when you check with the finance company the account was settled long before, in some instances a few years before. The problem is although the finance companies inform HPI/Experian sometimes HPI/Experian don't update their records. As I said before, the system isn't without it's problems.

[patdavies]

OK, point taken.

The moral being that one cannot rely on HPI/Experian checks if there is any chance that the VRM might have changed.

[gwc1000]

Well, at least HPI recognise that their system is not infallible:


At HPI, we work hard to ensure that the data we receive and manage is the best available but no data source is perfect. That's why your HPI vehicle check includes the HPI Guarantee. Subject to the HPI Guarantee Terms & Conditions, the HPI Guarantee provides up to £30,000(£15,000 for written off vehicles) reimbursement of financial loss you suffer arising from inaccurate or incomplete information we supply to you as part of the HPI Check. As you'd expect from HPI, the cover is the most comprehensive available today.