The DVLA’s far-reaching changes to vehicle tax and the driver’s licence are meant to – or will in the near future – usher in an age of hassle-free motoring, stripped of red tape and bureaucracy. But is everything going to plan?
The Good
In theory, the changes being made to the way we pay our car tax or use our driving licences are good news for motorists – they mean simpler, quicker processes for drivers. But over the past few months, critical issues have emerged that threaten to take the shine off the DLVA’s much-touted attempt to beat down bureaucracy.
The BadWhether you’re planning to rent a car overseas or take a test drive, make sure you know the new driving licence rules.
Come June 8th the paper counterpart driving licence will be no more. While the move will get rid of that tiresome piece of paper, it could mean a major headache when turning up at an overseas car rental company or showroom. Handing over your counterpart will no longer be valid to show that you are able to drive – instead, you will need to log onto the DVLA website beforehand and get a code that can then be used by the company to check you’re actually allowed to drive.
There are a couple of potential bugbears with the new system though; first, the code is only valid for 72 hours so you can’t get a code and expect it to last, say, for a month. Secondly, if you are overseas for longer than three days and decide you want to rent a car, it could be a problem if you don’t have access to the internet to order the code.
Hopefully, the DVLA will make good on its assurance that a phone line will be up and running by the time the paper licence is discontinued to cover such issues. In the meantime, watch the video below for more information about the discontinuation of the paper counterpart and its ramifications:
The UglyIf buying a used car, make sure you know the new car tax rules – or your new pride and joy could end up clamped.
Before October 1st last year when the car tax disc was discontinued, if you bought a used car with a still-current tax disc, it could be passed from the old to new owner. The new rules state however that as soon as the car is sold on, the existing tax is automatically cancelled and any remaining paid tax is refunded to the previous owner. It is then the responsibility of the new owner to get all-new tax for the car immediately.
This appears though to have led to confusion for some buyers judging from the latest startling clamping figures – the clamping of untaxed cars shot up by 60% in the first month after the tax disc was shredded with 8,630 fines issued compared to the previous monthly average of 5,000.
It suggests a host of potential problems; that some used car buyers see what appears to be a valid tax disc in the windscreen and believe they are covered – when in fact they’re not. Secondly, while the DVLA says that it writes to buyers and tells them to purchase tax on two occasions before clamping a car, anecdotal evidence suggests that this is not always the case.
Finally, some reports have highlighted potential admin errors at the DVLA itself which may also have attributed to the rise in fines and clamping. The best course of action to limit the possibility of being clamped? Watch the video below and make sure you follow the basic process:
Image © Eric E Castro