Car Tax

[Ant M3]

So, I got my M3P back in November ... I’ve just had a letter from the DVLA saying it’s not taxed !
I’ve had 5 new cars over the last 3 years, every dealer has taxed the car prior to pick up .... I can’t believe that Tesla didn’t do it nor tell me that they hadn’t and that I needed to !!! I’m lucky I didn’t get caught by the police on the public road otherwise I would have got a big fine !

I’m proper pissed about it !

 

[LongRanger]

dealers should normally sit with you whilst a car is taxed for the first time- but it is your responsibility not theirs, has been this way for a while now - since rules on tax display changed.

Bit disappointing though that the dealer didn't encourage you to get it done during collection handover, it is completely standard for them not to do it on your behalf though ....

 

[MrBadger]

Bad form from them, but probably an admin oversight. Tesla do usually tax new cars when first registering

Check if a vehicle is taxed

Did you get your V5?

 

[Ant M3]

Bad form from them, but probably an admin oversight. Tesla do usually tax new cars when first registering

Check if a vehicle is taxed

Did you get your V5?

I must admit, thinking back I didn’t get my v5... my bad

I know its my responsibility, but have grown accustomed to the dealer doing it for me I feel really let down by Tesla.

 

[freekie]

Thanks for this post and the link for checking. I had made assumptions. Relieved to see mine was taxed but interestingly it was taxed about 4 weeks before I picked it up...

 

[Adopado]

I can't recall any discussion at my handover. However, the car was appropriately taxed.

 

[MrBadger]

Thanks for this post and the link for checking. I had made assumptions. Relieved to see mine was taxed but interestingly it was taxed about 4 weeks before I picked it up...

Tax runs from start of month if that helps, So taxing at end of month, you lose most of a months tax - not an issue with 0 rate first year.

 

[NewbieT]

Did you buy custom or inventory? Worth checking how many owners it says on your V5.

 

[freekie]

Tax runs from start of month if that helps, So taxing at end of month, you lose most of a months tax - not an issue with 0 rate first year.

Thanks that explains it. 1st Sept for the end of Sept deluge of deliveries.

 

[Jason71]

So, I got my M3P back in November ... I’ve just had a letter from the DVLA saying it’s not taxed !
I’ve had 5 new cars over the last 3 years, every dealer has taxed the car prior to pick up .... I can’t believe that Tesla didn’t do it nor tell me that they hadn’t and that I needed to !!! I’m lucky I didn’t get caught by the police on the public road otherwise I would have got a big fine !

I’m proper pissed about it !

Was it brand new or inventory?
It is not possible to register a new car without taxing it. It is part of the registration process.
But
When there is a change of keeper the tax is ended and the new keeper has to re-tax. if your brand new car needs tax it says to me that there was a change of keeper somewhere along the line. did they register it wrong and have to fix it?
The problem you have now is that the first licence is free but after that it is £320 for the next 5 years. So you should have had a free year but now you will have to pay £320 to tax it.
You can double check it here:
https://vehicleenquiry.service.gov.uk/
is all the info on here correct?

also your V5 should say the number of former keepers if there are any . You can double check your V5 is the latest one on the link above as well by clicking on the "view the tax rates for the vehicle" link and entering it

 

[Avendit]

how can it not be taxed if tax is 0 in the first year? I was assuming no action needed till my one year anniversary (happy birthday, here's a tax bill )

 

[Jason71]

how can it not be taxed if tax is 0 in the first year? I was assuming no action needed till my one year anniversary (happy birthday, here's a tax bill )

in theory it can't which is why there is more to this than Tesla just forgetting to tax it. Something has happened after registration that has cancelled the licence.
Mind you I do know of one case where a dealer ( not Tesla) did not even register a car properly and the owner drove around for 5 months in a car that was not even registered let alone taxed!

 

[Ant M3]

Did you buy custom or inventory? Worth checking how many owners it says on your V5.

Mine was a custom car

 

[Ant M3]

Was it brand new or inventory?
It is not possible to register a new car without taxing it. It is part of the registration process.
But
When there is a change of keeper the tax is ended and the new keeper has to re-tax. if your brand new car needs tax it says to me that there was a change of keeper somewhere along the line. did they register it wrong and have to fix it?
The problem you have now is that the first licence is free but after that it is £320 for the next 5 years. So you should have had a free year but now you will have to pay £320 to tax it.
You can double check it here:
https://vehicleenquiry.service.gov.uk/
is all the info on here correct?

also your V5 should say the number of former keepers if there are any . You can double check your V5 is the latest one on the link above as well by clicking on the "view the tax rates for the vehicle" link and entering it

Ahhh

so that’s what was wrong then !!
Tesla had incorrectly assigned the car to my company, I contacted the dvla and sent and amendment form to say it had been done wrong and I needed it transferred to me personally ... however this was done as a correction, not a new owner ! I’ll have to contact them again tomorrow to clear this up
Thanks for the advice though

 

[Jason71]

Ahhh

so that’s what was wrong then !!
Tesla had incorrectly assigned the car to my company, I contacted the dvla and sent and amendment form to say it had been done wrong and I needed it transferred to me personally ... however this was done as a correction, not a new owner ! I’ll have to contact them again tomorrow to clear this up
Thanks for the advice though

I had the same thing and I had it fixed as a correction and it did not affect my tax so it is possible to do that. It sounds as if the DVLA have screwed up and done it as a change of Keeper. Does the V5 show one former keeper on the front? if so then its that. If not then its some other type of screw up.
I have had some dealings with DVLA through my work. It's one thing to get a correction done on a keeper name. it's a lot more complicated to unpick a change of keeper and reinstate the first year tax after the fact. They can do it though so if they say they can't it means they won't. if you keep complaining and keep escalating it they usually give in in the end if it is their fault.

If it looks like taking some time to sort out though you might be best advised to pay the VED and then make getting that back part of the complaint. Currently you are driving an untaxed car which means you run the risk of, being stopped by the Police, clamped or towed by a local authority and heaven help you if you have an accident and your insurance company finds out...........
Good luck.

 

[Ant M3]

I had the same thing and I had it fixed as a correction and it did not affect my tax so it is possible to do that. It sounds as if the DVLA have screwed up and done it as a change of Keeper. Does the V5 show one former keeper on the front? if so then its that. If not then its some other type of screw up.
I have had some dealings with DVLA through my work. It's one thing to get a correction done on a keeper name. it's a lot more complicated to unpick a change of keeper and reinstate the first year tax after the fact. They can do it though so if they say they can't it means they won't. if you keep complaining and keep escalating it they usually give in in the end if it is their fault.

If it looks like taking some time to sort out though you might be best advised to pay the VED and then make getting that back part of the complaint. Currently you are driving an untaxed car which means you run the risk of, being stopped by the Police, clamped or towed by a local authority and heaven help you if you have an accident and your insurance company finds out...........
Good luck.

Thanks for this, really appreciate the advice

I have taxed the car earlier tonight, now need to do what you recommend.... wish me luck !

 

[curmudgeon]

Same thing happened to me, change of keeper error on company name change but I just paid the tax anyhow to save the hassle. The tax only runs for five years so it has to be paid at some time by someone.

 

[Jason71]

Same thing happened to me, change of keeper error on company name change but I just paid the tax anyhow to save the hassle. The tax only runs for five years so it has to be paid at some time by someone.

True but it does not have to be you!
If you plan to keep it 6 years paying it now will save you money since it will not be £320 in 6 years it will probably be £400
Also if you plan to buy out the company later on better to let the company pay it now with untaxed funds than you pay it later from taxed income.
BUT
On the other hand if its leased or you don't plan to keep it for 6 years then you are just waving goodbye to £320.
similarly if it gets written off you lose out if you pay it now

So it depends on your circumstances and the quality of your driving

 

[Jason71]

Thanks for this, really appreciate the advice

I have taxed the car earlier tonight, now need to do what you recommend.... wish me luck !

Let us know how you get on. Tesla's incompetence + DVLA's means you aren't the first and won't be the last with this issue so any feedback will be useful for the next poor sod. Also this thread needs an ending. Hopefully a happy one.

 

[curmudgeon]

True but it does not have to be you!
If you plan to keep it 6 years paying it now will save you money since it will not be £320 in 6 years it will probably be £400
Also if you plan to buy out the company later on better to let the company pay it now with untaxed funds than you pay it later from taxed income.
BUT
On the other hand if its leased or you don't plan to keep it for 6 years then you are just waving goodbye to £320.
similarly if it gets written off you lose out if you pay it now

So it depends on your circumstances and the quality of your driving

Agreed, its not for everyone. My car is not leased and the plan is to buy it out of the company after 5 years so the company pays the tax now instead of me out of taxed income later. Which is a great plan if I can resist the urge to buy another car for the next 5 years.