DVLA RFL refunds?

[Dick Longbridge]

Has anyone had issues with DVLA RFL refunds?

I recently changed the V5 of our E91 so the car is in my fiancees name. It was in mine when I dailied it a few years back, but I'm trying to keep things spot on with insurance as it's now her own daily. 

We paid £112.75 on 3rd April for six months tax. We cashed it in on 30th April so ended it within the same month. 

£112.75 ÷ 6 months is £18.79 per month.

So £18.79 x 5 months = £93.95 expected refund, right? 

Any guesses why they've instead sent me a cheque for £85.41? 

[camryv6]

You pay more for six months tax, per month as opposed to one year, they have refunded you like you have payed one years tax.

[Kiltox]

Yeah the extra for paying 6 months is like an admin fee. It is cheaper to pay monthly!

[adw1977]

12 month tax would have been £205 and your refund is 5/12 of that.

When you bought 6 months tax you paid 10% extra, £112.75 instead of £102.50, but as camryv6 said, you don't get the extra 10% back when you cash it in.  That's been the system for many years, since well before the paper discs were abolished. 

[sutty2006]

I just pay monthly now, then when I don’t want it on the road I sorn it on the last day of the month before. Haven’t bought 6 or 12 months for years now. 

[Dick Longbridge]

Every day's a school day. I honestly never knew about the refund policy. 

Robbing bastards!

I quite like your idea @sutty2006 - especially with motors I only run for a few months of the year. However,  the E91 is our family car, so next time is just need to bite the bullet and spunk £toomuch on 12 months and have done with it. 

[NorfolkNWeigh]

I’m with @sutty2006, even stuff that’s only £20/30 per year goes on the monthly. I SORNed MrsN’sML this month, no worries about refunds as I cancelled the dd a week before. The only cars I’ve kept taxed this month are both £2 specials my E class and the family bike Fiat 500.

[Out Run]

Monthly direct debit all the way and SORN before the month is up. Easy.

[sutty2006]

Now, if I had cars that are 20/30 quid a year then there’s no point in monthly as it’s cheap enough as it is. Really I have 2 cars that stay on the road all year round. My discovery at £28 a month and the carlton at £23 a month (except this month due to China virus). The rest of my fleet are taxed “as and when” I need them. I should really tax my 2 dailys as a one off payment but the monthly payments make it easier when you live pay day to payday some months. 

[Six-cylinder]

Still slightly cheaper if you pay 12 months up front than DD monthly. Then you get all unused months returned at divide by 12 rate.

[sutty2006]

I have a hard time trusting the doovlaaa to return funds owing. Been there done that got ripped off in the past never to trust them with anything ever again. Etc etc 

[Jim Bell]

2 hours ago, Out Run said:

Monthly direct debit all the way and SORN before the month is up. Easy.

This. But they still charge both parties for the changeover month if you're buying/selling and will keep taking your direct debit after they've provided confirmation you've sold a car if you don't cancel the direct debit. 

In short, they are chancing cunts. 

[Out Run]

2 hours ago, Jim Bell said:

This. But they still charge both parties for the changeover month if you're buying/selling and will keep taking your direct debit after they've provided confirmation you've sold a car if you don't cancel the direct debit. 

In short, they are chancing cunts. 

Cant’t argue with this. Good thing I don’t often sell cars.

[Six-cylinder]

5 hours ago, Jim Bell said:

This. But they still charge both parties for the changeover month if you're buying/selling and will keep taking your direct debit after they've provided confirmation you've sold a car if you don't cancel the direct debit. 

In short, they are chancing cunts. 

Again paying annually can help if you time the sale as the last day of the month. Seller gets their refund for the following months including the month starting next day and the buyer does not tax the car until the next day the 1st of the month then nothing is lost.

[nigel bickle]

And if YOU cancel the Direct \debit ( cos its close to month end) rather than let them take it- & refund, they will let you do it a dozen or so times then cut you off -refusing any further DD's from that Account

Took 4 phone calls to Doovla before \I got that explanation. No appeal, no way round it, no expiry date. So, another Account it is then -but what a faff!

[Matty]

As above, both of mine on DD. Just easier and nothing to remember on ce set up either

[sutty2006]

1 hour ago, nigel bickle said:

And if YOU cancel the Direct \debit ( cos its close to month end) rather than let them take it- & refund, they will let you do it a dozen or so times then cut you off -refusing any further DD's from that Account

Took 4 phone calls to Doovla before \I got that explanation. No appeal, no way round it, no expiry date. So, another Account it is then -but what a faff!

Is that what happens when you cancel the direct debit and don’t declare it Sorn / they try and take the money before it’s sorned? I always cancel the direct debit after I’ve declared Sorn “just in case” because “DVLA” 

[davocano]

56 minutes ago, sutty2006 said:

Is that what happens when you cancel the direct debit and don’t declare it Sorn / they try and take the money before it’s sorned? I always cancel the direct debit after I’ve declared Sorn “just in case” because “DVLA” 

I notified SORN on the 30th but didn't cancel the DD; can anyone guess what happened on the 1st?

Still awaiting refund.

[Talbot]

29 minutes ago, davocano said:

I notified SORN on the 30th but didn't cancel the DD; can anyone guess what happened on the 1st?

DVLA's mimimum response time to any change is measureable in weeks, not hours.  Don't expect any change you make to be reflected in anything they do for at least a fortnight.

15 hours ago, Jim Bell said:

they still charge both parties for the changeover month

They do, and the exchequer makes something like £30M a year by doing so.  Like the bunch of thieving cunts they are.  One way around this I've found is to get the seller to send off the change of ownership paperwork on the last day of the month, with proof of postage.  You then use the green slip to do your new tax on the first of the month.  DVLA then get the notification of new owner a day or two later, but have to refund that month's tax to the old owner as you have proof it was done "last month".

Most times it just works.  Only once have I had a snotty letter from DVLA saying that the vehicle had an untaxed period (which was mere hours), but when I called them up and spoke to them I was assured that it wasn't a problem as "it's taxed now, so no issues".

I did wonder if it was possible to declare SORN for those few hours, but they seem to stop that as once you declare SORN, it's quite hard to re-tax the car within about a week.  I'm sure there's some combination of doing one thing online, another by post and the third at the post office, but I've not yet worked it out.  Maybe declaring SORN by post, then doing the change of owner by post, but doing the new tax online.  That might work perhaps.

 

Quite frankly, they need to sack the whole VED bullshit off and just put it as a tax on new vehicle sales.  £3000 extra on the average new car might make people think twice about buying new cars quite so often, and would push up the value of second-hand cars.  No bad thing, as it means it's far less likely that perfectly serviceable or in-need-of-only-minor-repair cars get scrapped.

[Jerzy Woking]

I have to continue paying tax on my van as it is parked on the road and no room to park outside my garage, although it is not being driven.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

My way around this is not to tax anything I buy until the 1st of the next month. Got away with it so far, fuck em. When you check online cars invariably show as taxed a couple of weeks after you buy them anyway. If I ever get caught I’m sure playing dumb will be a good defence , at least once!