CAR
TAX LAW
You’ve
probably seen the advertisements on television, and in newspapers
- there’s been a clamp down on car tax dodgers and there’s
no hiding place! The law has changed and they don’t have
to spot an unlicensed vehicle on the road; untaxed cars can be
identified from the DVLNI computer database and fined automatically.
Car tax evasion is a particular problem in NI and the aim is to make the roads
safer and strengthen the fight against car crime, but the change in the law is
causing considerable inconvenience to a Newry couple and their severely handicapped
daughter.
DVLNI told him not only once, but twice, that he couldn’t drive the car
without the tax disc arrive. So is Seamus breaking the law if he drives the
car while he waits for the tax disc? On Your Behalf asked Brendan Magee
Chief Executive with the DVLNI, his office came back
to us this week to explain that although this application was received on
8 January,
and the tax disc was issued on 13 January, it was not dispatched until the
19th although is practice that completed applications are dispatched on the
day of issue.
The DVLNI told On Your Behalf...
"The delay was with DVLNI and not, as first thought, with Royal Mail. There
is no excuse for this and the Agency apologises to your listener. .The Local
Office Service Manager has been asked to investigate why there was a delay
in dispatch. Your listener has now received both the tax disc and registration
book for his new car."
New Car Tax Rules, Are You
Up to Date?
Clampdown on car tax dodgers
from January 1 - with automatic fines.
New vehicle tax rules announced
by the Government in May came into force on January 1st 2004
and will mean that motorists who fail to tax their vehicles within
a reasonable time will automatically receive an £80 penalty.
They will be identified from the DVLNI computer database, so
there will no longer be any need to spot an unlicensed vehicle
on the road.
The law changes have been
introduced by the Government throughout the UK in order to reduce
the number of untaxed vehicles on the road. In Northern Ireland
the evasion rate is running at 10% which equates to £13m
in lost revenue each year.
As vehicle tax can only be
purchased with a valid insurance and MOT certificate (if required),
reducing the number of untaxed cars means reducing the number
of cars without insurance and MOT and therefore helping to improve
road safety.
Mr Brendan Magee, Chief Executive
of DVLNI, told On Your Behalf
“Car tax evasion is a particular problem in Northern Ireland. The Government,
through the new laws that come into force in the New Year, is making a determined
effort to ensure there will be no hiding place for evaders.
“From January 1 we will
not need to detect untaxed vehicles on the roads. Car tax dodgers
will be identified from our computer and receive an automatic
penalty of £80, and will have to pay any tax arrears. Penalty
notices will be served by post on the registered keepers of the
vehicles.
“Nor is that the end
of the matter. Any registered keeper who persists in not licensing
the vehicle and is referred to a Magistrate’s Court, may
get a minimum fine of £1,000,” he said.
The new laws mean that from
January 1 the registered keeper of the vehicle is responsible
for licensing it. The keeper must advise DVLNI if the vehicle
has been sold, scrapped, stolen or exported – otherwise
the keeper is still liable for the road tax.
Anyone who has sold a vehicle
and notified DVLNI of its disposal has, since last month, been
issued with a receipt which is their proof of discharge of responsibility
for that vehicle.
Mr Magee said: “The
new legislation is in the interests of everyone. The rules will
increase the number of vehicles on our roads which are safe and
legal. At the same time, the rules will make DVLNI’s records
more accurate which will strengthen the ability of the police
to tackle car crime. This is a benefit to the whole community
not just to car owners.”
DVLNI has embarked on a
major communications campaign to inform motorists of the new
car tax
rules. An explanatory leaflet will be delivered to homes and
full information is available on their website.
To avoid the penalty motorists must make sure they do the following:
(i) Ensure their car tax is
kept up to date. All Vehicle Licences can be renewed at any of
the 8 Local Vehicle Licensing Offices throughout Northern Ireland
or by posting direct to the Vehicle Licensing Central Office,
County Hall, Coleraine, BT51 3TA. Licences can also be renewed
at selected Post Offices in Northern Ireland, using the V11(NI)
reminder form only.
(ii) Ensure they inform DVLNI
if they sell, export or scrap their car, otherwise they remain
liable for keeping the car tax up to date. Once DVLNI is informed
it will issue a receipt which motorists must keep safe. The same
applies for cars that are kept “off road”. Owners
must make a SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification) declaration
to DVLNI and will not need to pay car tax during the period the
car is not used on the road.
Information supplied
by DVLNI |
