Sold car to a dealer, DVLA has issued us a fine, but new buyer has taxed it

[Brodiedog]

My son owned a car, and due to splitting up with his girlfriend and having to move etc, he decided to sell his car to ease his finances.

 

Having arranged it with the dealer, at the very beginning of Feb 2022 (this year) he drove the car there, I drove my car there and we met at the dealer.

The car was sold, the V5 logbook was split, both parts were filled in, our half was signed, put into an envelope which was addressed, I had some stamps in my wallet and on the way home we posted it. As far as I im concerned and aware, our legal responsibility has been fulfilled and we just wait for the letter to come confirming the car is no longer registered to us.

 

The next correspondence we got posted to his ex girlfriends address where he used to live was dated the 14 march, we got it a few days later, which was headed FAILURE TO TAX VEHICLE telling him he was being fined £80 for failing to either tax or SORN the vehicle and giving him a number of ways to pay and/or inform them he no longer owned the vehicle.

 

I rang the DVLA on the number on the letter and was met with a flat response that the only option was to pay the fine, they were not prepared to discuss it and as I was not ringing them to pay the fine, they ended the call.

 

I rang again on the DVLA customer service number that I found on the internet and a spoke to a lady who told me that there has obviously been a mistake, although it was my fault for doing it by post instead of doing it online (Im 55, it didnt even occur to me that you could do it online, ive always registered or transferred cars by post ever since I learned to drive when I was 17).

 

She advised that we filled in the back of the form where there was a statement box where we could state the car had been sold to a dealer and we had posted the transfer slip and that once they received that it would be resolved. So we did exactly that, explained we had posted the registration slip and the car had been sold to a dealer and posted the form off.

 

The next letter we received posted to his ex girlfriends house, was dated the 30 April 2022

 

It states the following:

 

Dear Mr xxx

Thankyou for your recent letter. The information you have provided us will be used to update our records and you should receive an acknowledgment letter.

While you may no longer be the keeper of the vehicle, we did not receive notification at the relevant time and therefore as the registered keeper, you are responsible for licencing the vehicle or making a SORN.

 

It is not a valid defence to claim that you allowed a motor trader or other third party to notify the DVLA of disposal and any acknowledgement letter we issue after the commencement of procedures will not be accepted as mitigation.

 

Consequently you remain liable for the £80 penalty. Furthermore the arrears of the vehicle duty to date remain outstanding.

 

Then there is some information on how to pay.

 

When we filled in the previous form, at no point did we ever claim that we had allowed anyone to notify the DVLA on our behalf.

We posted the correctly filled in registration slip, in a main post office letterbox, on the way home, and stated exactly that in the statement box on the back of the previous letter so I dont know where that claim has even come from.

 

I rang the telephone number on the letter and spoke to an extremely rude lady who literally told me either I was going to pay her the money or she was going to end the call, and then she did exactly that while I was mid sentence. 

 

I spoke to the car dealer who told me that the car had been sold on to a new owner, the same month that my son sold it to him (Feb 22) and we checked the gov.uk website where it shows the car as currently taxed (which one must assume is by the new owner).

 

I rang the customer service number again and spoke to a very helpful person who explained to me that the car was still registered to my sons name and confirmed that yes he was still responsible for the current vehicle tax as well as the fine for not declaring SORN or taxing it.

 

I explained the situation and he looked at the vehicle records for me and agreed that an attempt to register the vehicle by someone other than ourselves in Feb, however the registration and payment was rejected and so in his words, "the ownership of the vehicle 'reverted' to my son and so he remains liable as the registered owner".

 

I asked if our conversation could be logged and he told me that wasn't possible, no notes or record of our conversation could be added to the case, it would never be possible to update or amend any information or even record the fact that I had telephoned in and spoken to anyone. he then advised me that the only possible course of action was to request an appeal pack, fill in the appeal forms with any new information and take it from there.

 

I asked if he could please send the forms to our correct address as it was a 45 mile round trip to his ex girlfriends house each time to pick up the letters, at which point he said he could no longer speak to me or send me any further correspondence as they could only correspond with or speak to a person who lived at the registered address. And he ended the phone call.

 

going on the fact that he just told me there was no possible record of the conversation we had or that Id phoned in, I rang back, used my sons old address and got an appeal pack sent. 

 

I now have this in front of me and it states very clearly that only any new evidence that I can supply will be considered, any evidence or statements previously considered will not be accepted.

 

Ive got until the 9 of next month to get this letter sent, ill do it by registered post.

 

Please help with any advice.

 

This is an appalling way to to be treated and it looks like we are going to have to pay a fine and backdated tax when we have done nothing wrong.

Talking to the DVLA is like banging your head against a post...

 

Many thanks in advance for reading this long ramble and any advice given

 

Nick

 

[dx100uk]

stop ringing them!!

 

you did your bit by returning the slip

if they've lost the slip , thats their problem not your, this happens 100'000 of times a year, the DVLA are notorious for missing post. 

 

it is not a fine and only a summary offence, the bottom line is there is very little the DVLA can actually do.

the next letters will be from a powerless DCA whom are not bailiffs and have zero legal powers on any debt no matter what its type.

 

get the old GF to photo any new letters rather than you wasting petrol.

 

id the DVLA wanted to go nuclear on this they would HAVE to use you sons correct address.

 

if you wish to fill in that silly form, then so be it, it will clarify legally where new letters must be sent too, but in the two occasions i've had this i simply stuck by my guns and stated the slip WAS posted and after a few months each went dead following DCa letters.

 

 

 

 

[Brodiedog]

Just so that there are no debt collectors turning up an his ex girlfriends address, as that would not be fair on them, I have notified them in writing of his correct address and that any further correspondence to his old address will be returned or disposed of. Sent by recorded delivery.

 

Ill update this if there are any updates from the DVLA

 

BTW. Re your avatar and location.

 

Clearly you are a person with impeccable music taste.

[dx100uk]

dca's have always amused me to death.

 

dx