Woohoo

[dieselnutjob]

I finally get a free road tax for the 604. As the road tax runs out at the end of March I think I have to Sorn it on the last day of March and then on April 1st get it reclassified at the post office and get my free tax.

 

I'm imagining that I will have to go to 25 post offices before I find one that will do it.

[castros_bro]

Do it Do it Do it

 

and post it as you go as there will be between 1 and 10 billion peeps here cheering you on  instead of working, a bit like a private FA cup final.

[dieselnutjob]

You lot will probably be gambling on how many it takes.

 

I'm wondering if I will even have to get the Dvla on the phone to tell them they have to (I think)

 

Also I don't remember if it still had an Mot.

[Dirk Diggler]

It's a rolling 30 year for vintage, €56 a yr tax here; at 1987 now it's such a sweet spot of cars the next 7 or 8 years are going to be great.

[dieselnutjob]

It turns out that the 604 is MOTed until April 21st, so I should be able to drive it for 3 weeks legally tax free.

 

Am I right in thinking that once the MOT is expired, I don't need to SORN it do I?  As long as it is parked on private property and not driven then I am not breaking any laws am I?

 

I am probably going to pull the engine out once the MOT has expired.  It needs a chassis rail welding and a crank oil seal and I don't think I really see the point in trying to MOT it as it won't pass anyway.

[Craig the Princess]

I believe you still need to tax it, but at the free rate. Then Sorn if it isn't insured.

[Pillock]

Yes. Continuous Enforcement means that if it's not insured it needs to be SORN.

[Junkman]

I finally get a free road tax for the 604. As the road tax runs out at the end of March I think I have to Sorn it on the last day of March and then on April 1st get it reclassified at the post office and get my free tax.

 

I'm imagining that I will have to go to 25 post offices before I find one that will do it.

This is exactly how it works.

Try a post office run by Sikhs, they were the ones that finally could do it for me.

However, three weeks after becoming tax free, your car will retaliate by frying yet another engine.

At least if it's haunted. Guess how I know.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I'm imagining that I will have to go to 25 post offices before I find one that will do it.

 

 

To do the Rover, I had to visit... uh, five? 

 

1st: Large post office - cashier gamely attempted to change taxation class, but could not figure out how on the computer. Decided it might not be possible, at least not by her. Manager not available. 

2nd: Drove to main post office in town. Main post office in town missing, having been unexpectedly replaced with a derelict building. Maybe this one shouldn't count.

3rd: Went to small post office (sweet shop with a book of stamps type). The cashier said the guy who knows how to work the computer is at lunch. 

4th: Drove to far away town with post office who were helpful with my passport. They explained that the post office cannot change taxation class to historic, they can only do from disabled to PLG. His explanation made sense and was delivered with conviction, and I became a bit concerned since I'd SORN'd the Rover to avoid paying April's tax! 

 

I gave up, but read on some forum about someone who'd had the exact same problem the year before, so tried that sweet shop again. 

 

5th: Back at the sweetshop, the guy was back from lunch. He pressed a few buttons on his computer and handed me a receipt for the new historic tax. Took 30 seconds. 

[Jim Bell]

There is nothing that cannot be accomplished at a sweet shop if you are determined enough.

[Craig the Princess]

There is nothing that cannot be accomplished at a sweet shop if you are determined enough.

Unless you are the third school child trying to enter.

[Jim Bell]

Determined. Thats the key. One out, one in. Come on man. Youre better than this.

[dieselnutjob]

The outcome was very boring.  The first post office I went to followed the process perfectly and gave me a receipt for 12 months road fund license for £0 and sent my V5 off to the DVLA.

 

Their website to check if a vehicle is taxed borked on my car for a couple of days (it wouldn't tell me whether the car was taxed or not and gave some sort of database lookup error) but now says that the car is taxed until March 2018.

 

I asked the lady in the post office if she gets many of these and she said mine was the second that day, the first being a Ford Granada fairly near me.