Legally driving a new car before registering it

Honest John Back Room » Legal matters
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Mon 21 Oct 2019 15:02
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Algy Pug

Is it possible for somebody to legally drive a new car on the road for a full year before registering it?

If so, who?

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 15:18
Legally driving a new car before registering it - HGV ~ P Valentine

PC Andrew Huggett said, “If the drivers deny being the owners, or are unable to tell us who is, then we could end up arresting them on suspicion of stealing the vehicles, confiscating the vehicles and trying to prosecute the drivers.

“If they admit to being the owners then we can update our records and in future identify them as being responsible for the vehicles - meaning they won’t get away with the driving offences again.”

Driving an unregistered vehicle is a serious offence that can have far-reaching and catastrophic consequences. It’s a scary thought when you think about what could happen if your vehicle is unregistered. If you are caught driving an unregistered vehcile, you may be fined and police may remove the vehicle's number plates on the spot or they may seize the vehicle.

Your compulsory third party insurance (green slip) isn’t valid if your car isn’t registered. This means if you’re involved in a crash, you could be held personally liable for compensation to anyone who was hurt. And that’s the kind of thing that can ruin you financially – not just now, but well into your future.

Driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle is an offence attracting on the spot infringement notice fines of over $1200 ($607 for being unregistered and $530 for being uninsured). If the matter goes to court, the maximum fine is $2200 for driving unregistered and $5500 for driving uninsured. Ouch.

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above are copied from 2 diff sites. The thing is that the whole reason to register a vehicle is for fixed penalty notices from speed cameras, they use that register to send such notices to the registered owner, I am surprised you got insurance for yourself on a vehicle that is private ( not company based ) unless you where less then honest about the details.

I would suggest you get it done sooner rather then later, but if you got clocked on a camera then expect some sort of visit or notice from the police.

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 15:22
Legally driving a new car before registering it - HGV ~ P Valentine
Overview

You’ll usually have to register a car or any other vehicle as soon as you’ve:

  • bought it
  • built it
  • rebuilt or altered it
  • imported it

You do this by filling in forms and sending them to DVLA. The forms you have to send depend on your circumstances.

DVLA may need to inspect your vehicle to:

  • make sure the vehicle exists, has been assembled into a complete vehicle and the log book (V5C) is in your name
  • update their records because of changes you’ve made to the vehicle

They will send you a letter if they need to do this. You will not have to pay a fee.

www.gov.uk/vehicle-registration

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 15:32
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Algy Pug

I should have phrased my post better.

Back in July 2014, I had what you might call an interaction with a car - a new white Ford Kuga.

Without going into all the details, it's only recently that I've found out the car in question wasn't registered until May 2015 - then followed by its first MOT in 2018. A friend has made various suggestions how this could be possible. I'd like to hear other people's ideas.

So, who would have the legal right to drive a car for a full year without registering it?

M.o.d? A private investigator? The Police? A cabinet minister?

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 16:10
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Brit_in_Germany

It might not be the same car. Maybe the Kuga plate was transferred onto a new(er) vehicle.

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 16:49
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Algy Pug

It was white Kuga in 2014 - it's still a white Kuga. So it's still driving around with the same plate - same colour, same model.

To be honest I tried to track its registration plate MOT history a long time back, but I seem to remember it belonged to a different car prior to 2014. Now it just says first registered in 2015. Very odd when I saw the same car many times the year before.

I won't paste the plate on here obviously, but it was a distinctive short plate.

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 17:33
Legally driving a new car before registering it - sammy1

Was it an import or merely driven in from a right hand drive country and not registered immediately?

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 20:42
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Algy Pug

British car, British plates. I saw it every week for a full 6 months in 2014. Usually driven by a middle-aged woman, sometimes accompanied by a second woman.

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 22:08
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Brit_in_Germany

So MAW carries on where she left off - has another accident and writes off the car. Too embarassed, she replaces old with new and keeps the same plate, hoping the neighbours won't notice.

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 22:21
Legally driving a new car before registering it - FP

"Driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle is an offence attracting on the spot infringement notice fines of over $1200 ($607 for being unregistered and $530 for being uninsured). If the matter goes to court, the maximum fine is $2200 for driving unregistered and $5500 for driving uninsured."

What is relevance of USA penalties?

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Mon 21 Oct 2019 23:27
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Algy Pug

"Driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle is an offence attracting on the spot infringement notice fines of over $1200 ($607 for being unregistered and $530 for being uninsured). If the matter goes to court, the maximum fine is $2200 for driving unregistered and $5500 for driving uninsured."

What is relevance of USA penalties?

Well exactly.

C'mon you lot!

I live in a respectable area, it's unlikely to have been a middle-aged woman being naughty with her car registration is it? Tbh I think it was an unmarked Police car, so does my friend.

Is this possible?

Edited by Algy Pug on 21/10/2019 at 23:29

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Sun 17 Nov 2019 11:09
Legally driving a new car before registering it - thunderbird

How in the UK could you buy a new car without it being registered. Bought more than a few in the past and the dealer always does that for you. Never an option to drive away and sort it for yourself later.

I would expect it to be a legal requirement for dealers to register them. The criminal types would all buys their cars unregistered to avoid being traced surely.

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Sun 17 Nov 2019 11:41
Legally driving a new car before registering it - Gerry Sanderson

Of interest to you pug

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/2742/contents/made

part 3 covers need to reg ister a new car

dvd

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