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Car sold and DVLA notified but they are still pursuing over the now-expired tax-disc
My daughter part exchanged her car just before the tax disc expired, and sent the required notification to DVLA. She then received a penalty notification, which she responded to with the explanation that she was no longer the owner, and the sales form detailing the part-ex as evidence. She has now received a letter from the DVLA enforcement manager telling her that as she is still showing as the registered keeper she is still liable for the £80 penalty. How can she avoid this penalty?
If the V5 form (and there are various types) was returned in accordance with the instructions, then she should have received a letter from the DVLA within four weeks acknowledging her discharge of her responsibilities for the vehicle. If it is less than 4 weeks since she sold the car it is possible that the DVLA have not yet caught up with the paperwork and that the tax-disc notice (the issuing of which is largely an automatic process) will be withdrawn without too much fuss.
If it is more than 4 weeks since the vehicle was sold and no such acknowledgement has been received from the DVLA, then it is possible the V5 has gone astray.
In either event, given that the car was part exchanged it may be worth going back to the garage and asking them to write a letter acknowledging that they purchased the vehicle and the date on which they did so and sending that, along with the bill of sale to the enforcement manager concerned, explaining that the car has been disposed of before the excise duty expired, the V5 was completed and returned in accordance with DVLA requirements and thus his notice against your daughter is clearly unjust, unenforceable and should be withdrawn.
The DVLA are justifiably proud of their service record and it would also be a good idea to copy all the correspondence to
Ian Broom
Customer Services Manager
DVLA
Swansea
SA7 0EE
e-mail: csm.dvla@gtnet.gov.uk
with a covering letter explaining the situation and asking him to look into it.
Roadside Lawyer notes: The DVLA have since responded to the registered keeper saying if an acknowledgement of change of ownership is not received within four weeks of their being notified of a change, then the vehicle remains the responsibility of the previous keeper and should any fines accrue they will fall on them. It is the responsibility of the keeper to verify the notice has been received and acknowledged. The DVLA will not be responsible or held accountable if the original change of ownership form was not received and if they do not acknowledge the change in 4 weeks, you remain legally responsible for any fines that accrue to the vehicle.
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