SORN when you buy a new bike - be careful!

Just in case anyone doesnt know I just came across this on the DVLA website -

If you buy a vehicle that already has a SORN from its previous keeper, the SORN will finish as soon as you buy the vehicle. You will need to make a new SORN.

Penalties
If you don’t make a SORN when you have to you’ll automatically be fined £80, will need to get a new tax disc and must pay any tax arrears. You could also get a County Court Judgement against you, be fined a minimum of £1,000 and be liable to prosecution.

I found it by accident (having bought a second bike which was SORN and is staying that way for a few months) - SO glad I did.

Is easy to re-sorn and I believe you have a month from purchase in which to do so.

Easy peasy to do it on line!

BB

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Originally Posted by Blackbonnie

Easy peasy to do it on line!

BB

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Yes definitely took me about a minute when I realised I needed to do it.

I wonder how many people have a bike sat in a garage bought as SORN and totally unaware they need to do it again as the new owner.

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Originally Posted by Blackbonnie

Easy peasy to do it on line!

BB

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Ok if you have the V5 in your name. If not you need to go to the post ffice with the new keepers supplement.

But still very easy.

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Originally Posted by Jon_W

[quote author=Blackbonnie link=1354821156/2#2 date=1354865926]Easy peasy to do it on line!

BB

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Ok if you have the V5 in your name. If not you need to go to the post ffice with the new keepers supplement.

But still very easy.[/quote]

Hi Jon

You dont need the V5 in your name, the slip you get from the seller from his/her V5 has the reference number on it that you need.

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Originally Posted by Jon_W

If not you need to go to the post ffice with the new keepers supplement.

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Nope. I found out yesterday that the Post Office no longer does the form to declare SORN. Apparently the DVLA only do it over the phone or via the internet now.

I'm not sure if you can do it via the new keeper section, I usually wait until I have the log book in my name as any declaration will go to the registered keeper and how can I be sure the now previous owner has sent the log book off like they should.

Its a frankly stupid and pointless rule that has not been advertised in the slightest. I only found out by chance after buying a bike on SORN which I kept off road for sometime. I think it was 6 months or so before I found out that I should have made a SORN declaration as ownership had changed. They said that the Tax Arrears may be in contact with me about it, I politely informed them that they would be rather pointless exercise on their part as it wasn't as if they didn't have my address to question me on it for the past 6 months as they had sent me the V5. I never heard anymore about that bike...

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Originally Posted by squirrel_hunter

[quote author=Jon_W link=1354821156/4#4 date=1354875060]If not you need to go to the post ffice with the new keepers supplement.

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I'm not sure if you can do it via the new keeper section...[/quote]

Yes you can, I did, you just have to enter reg doc number printed on the slip from the V5 which the old keeper gives you.

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Originally Posted by Nicky

[quote author=squirrel_hunter link=1354821156/6#6 date=1354930049][quote author=Jon_W link=1354821156/4#4 date=1354875060]If not you need to go to the post ffice with the new keepers supplement.

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....

I'm not sure if you can do it via the new keeper section...[/quote]

Yes you can, I did, you just have to enter reg doc number printed on the slip from the V5 which the old keeper gives you.
[/quote]

Yep just checked and the new keeper section does have the doc number on it to allow you to do all sorts of things. However as I questioned above, if the previous owner hasn't sent the form off then I assume the SORN declaration will stay with that keepers details. So if your SORN is processed before the change of keeper then once the keeper details change the bike would still be untaxed and unSORNed... Thus I wait until I have the V5 in my name and then declare SORN.

I bought a bike last April that had no MOT and on which the RFL was about to expire. I tried to SORN it on-line but the DVLA wouldn't let me do it so I went to the Post Office, got the relevent form, filled it in and posted it off. Four weeks later I received the new V5C in my name and four weeks after that an £80 fine through the post for not declaring SORN >:(

And to think if I hadn't bothered to try to do things all legal like then I could've saved myself a **** load of cash!