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Hi
Here is my story, i welcome any comments or advice.
I bought an untaxed car on ebay (tax ran out end of Jan 09) and the seller brought the car and documents round to my house on 17/3/09. He/I left the car outside the house, on the road while i went round to the Post Office to tax it. In the 45-50 minutes that i was out the DVLA enforcement van happened to go down my street and by the time i got back, the car was clamped. I rang the car pound number on the sticker that they put on the car but was advised the only way i would get the clamp off was to pay the £100 fine,which i did at my local DVLA office. I showed them the tax disc that i had bought and they informed the clampers to remove the clamp.
I have now had a summons from the DVLA to appear in court with the threat of a £1000 max fine, plus they want me to pay the back tax for Feb 09. Its only £15 but i object to having to pay for the tax when i wasnt the owner of the vehicle.
Anyone got any ideas on what the fine is likely to be?
Am i liable to pay the tax for the month when i wasnt the owner of the car?
Hi
Here is my story, i welcome any comments or advice.
I bought an untaxed car on ebay (tax ran out end of Jan 09) and the seller brought the car and documents round to my house on 17/3/09. He/I left the car outside the house, on the road while i went round to the Post Office to tax it. In the 45-50 minutes that i was out the DVLA enforcement van happened to go down my street and by the time i got back, the car was clamped. I rang the car pound number on the sticker that they put on the car but was advised the only way i would get the clamp off was to pay the £100 fine,which i did at my local DVLA office. I showed them the tax disc that i had bought and they informed the clampers to remove the clamp.
I have now had a summons from the DVLA to appear in court with the threat of a £1000 max fine, plus they want me to pay the back tax for Feb 09. Its only £15 but i object to having to pay for the tax when i wasnt the owner of the vehicle.
Anyone got any ideas on what the fine is likely to be?
Am i liable to pay the tax for the month when i wasnt the owner of the car?
Thanks
No, you're not liable for VED prior to you becoming RK.
Attend the Court with proof of when you became the owner and RK. That is when your liability commences.
It would be a very hard-hearted Bench that allowed a conviction for no VED, as in fact, if you taxed it on 17th March, presumably you taxed it from the 1st of the month.
I don't think this is a clear cut as you suggest, pat. It would all depend on the actual time the OP purchased the car. If he paid by paypal when the auction finished I would say he became liable for the car at the time of payment, even if it was days before delivery. Also, I'm not sure how the law view ebay, because after all it is technically an auction, and the law on auctions is clear, in that a lot becomes the property of the purchaser at the moment the hammer falls.
I don't think this is a clear cut as you suggest, pat. It would all depend on the actual time the OP purchased the car. If he paid by paypal when the auction finished I would say he became liable for the car at the time of payment, even if it was days before delivery. Also, I'm not sure how the law view ebay, because after all it is technically an auction, and the law on auctions is clear, in that a lot becomes the property of the purchaser at the moment the hammer falls.
IMO. it doesn't matter when the OP became the owner; what matters is when they became the RK. He/she cannot become the RK until DVLA are notified of the change - there is varied opinion as to whether this occurs when DVLA update the register or when the previous and new keepers date the V5C.
VERA s.1
(1) A duty of excise (“vehicle excise duty”) shall be charged in respect of every mechanically propelled vehicle which is used, or kept, on a public road in the United Kingdom and shall be paid on a licence to be taken out by the person keeping the vehicle.
I see where you are coming from, pat but I'm not so sure. True, you become the RK when DVLA update their records and issue a new V5, however when changing ownership the V5 specifically asks for the date of sale or transfer, and this is the date that will be shown on the new V5, not the date DVLA issue it. Also, another thing to consider is it would be possible to constantly use an untaxed car legally. Two weeks after you aquire a car and before the V5 comes, transfer it to another member of your family, and then do the same again after two weeks and so on every two weeks transfer it amongst yourselves. That way nobody would ever become the RK.
Another point, if I were to drive one of my untaxed stock vehicles without trade plates, if stopped, I would be liable. However I am not, and never will be the RK for that vehicle. But it will be me that is paying.
As I posted some time ago DVLA were successful in convincing the magistrates that I should pay all back tax on a car including the time before I aquired it
Who is liable for tax on untaxed car?
(tax ran out end of Jan 09) and the seller brought the car and documents round to my house on 17/3/09. He/I left the car outside the house, on the road while i went round to the Post Office to tax it. In the 45-50 minutes that i was out the DVLA enforcement van happened to go down my street and by the time i got back, the car was clamped. I rang the car pound number on the sticker that they put on the car but was advised the only way i would get the clamp off was to pay the £100 fine,which i did at my local DVLA office. I showed them the tax disc that i had bought and they informed the clampers to remove the clamp.
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Originally Posted by garyclarke1962
