tobytyke:
Well if you tax a car online your effectively without a tax disc for 3 or 4 days but if the police check you out on PNC it will show as paid.
Quite right tobytyke, that’s why it’s a good idea to renew in advance of the expiry date. When I re-taxed my car, they could accept payment a fortnight before expiry. (They also knew that I was insured and had an M.O.T. cert. without me inputting the details ) I’d say that’s plenty of time to receive the new disc .
In the original question, it makes a difference as to the level of penalty if it shows as paid in the records. It’s the lack of a visible disc that causes the problem in the first place
gardun:
It is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on the public highway without displaying a current, valid tax disk, unless the vehicle is exempt. End of story. No disk, no drive.
On my firm,drivers are reminded to include disc checks as part of their vehicle check before leaving the yard.Everything is done by the book,but with several hundred vehicles in the fleet,the new disc may be in the office because no ones had time to put it in the truck.
AFAIK the only way you can drive an untaxed vehicle or a vehicle with no MOT legally on the public road is to display Trade plates. To get trade plates you need a trade licence, presumably you have to pay to keep this each year (like road tax ) and traders insurance usually covers all vehicles used in connection of the business of the trader. So to me no road tax means the insurance isn’t valid either.
what a load of crap, you only have to book a vehicle in for MOT, and as long as you have valid insurance you can drive it to and from an MOT station, or to a garage to have MOT work done on the vehicle, if you’ve booked it in
i’ve been doing it for years
biggusdickusgb:
AFAIK the only way you can drive an untaxed vehicle or a vehicle with no MOT legally on the public road is to display Trade plates. To get trade plates you need a trade licence, presumably you have to pay to keep this each year (like road tax ) and traders insurance usually covers all vehicles used in connection of the business of the trader. So to me no road tax means the insurance isn’t valid either.
what a load of crap, you only have to book a vehicle in for MOT, and as long as you have valid insurance you can drive it to and from an MOT station, or to a garage to have MOT work done on the vehicle, if you’ve booked it in
i’ve been doing it for years
Where did I say that the vehicle was going for an MOT or going to have work done for an MOT?
you didn’t,
but you said
AFAIK the only way you can drive an untaxed vehicle or a vehicle with no MOT legally on the public road is to display Trade plates.
So to me no road tax means the insurance isn’t valid either.
which is wrong.
gardun:
It is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on the public highway without displaying a current, valid tax disk, unless the vehicle is exempt. End of story. No disk, no drive.
So how do you take a SORN’d vehicle for an MOT to get the tax disc, which requires an MOT (If vehicle over 3 yrs old) and insurance to get?
Or are you talking rubbish, which in fact you are?
gardun:
It is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on the public highway without displaying a current, valid tax disk, unless the vehicle is exempt. End of story. No disk, no drive.
So how do you take a SORN’d vehicle for an MOT to get the tax disc, which requires an MOT (If vehicle over 3 yrs old) and insurance to get?
Or are you talking rubbish, which in fact you are?
Conor, I think you and gardun are both right. A look at my first quote called “s.29” above will show you. It mentions the words “not being an exempt vehicle.”
gardun:
…unless the vehicle is exempt.
Then you said
Conor:
…take a SORN’d vehicle for an MOT…
You can take a SORN’d vehicle for an MOT by exemption. You can get the exemption by booking the MOT. The (slight) difference is that the exemption is temporary and subject to a couple of other conditions. IMHO, I don’t think either of you were talking rubbish.
This is a slightly different scenario, but I worked for one of the major firms when the change to 44-ton operation came in. We were told to photocopy the tax discs and send the originals off to Fleet department.Every single driver queried this, so I checked with the legal guy, whose advice was that to run on a photocopy was ok but NOT to put it in the windscreen as that could attract a stop. IIRC we taped the copies above the windscreen.
The nub of the advice I received was that as long as the vehicle IS taxed (and the police/VOSA can check that easily enough) then you won’t get done for failure to display. Of course in our case, there was no question over the fact that the vehicles were taxed - it was just that we’d been told to send the discs away.
In the case in question, I would get hold of the hire company and get them to fax a copy of the disc down. Then at least you’ve got proof it has been taxed, even if it’ll be a few days befoe you get the disc. Without any proof I’d be a bit reluctant to use it.
It is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on the public highway without displaying a current, valid tax disk, unless the vehicle is exempt. End of story. No disk, no drive.
If I was not sure, or did not know I would say so. If it was only my opinion I would say so.
I am not wrong, nor am I talking rubvbish.
In fact, I am right.
In fact, I believe (note the qualifier) that the disk must be displayed within the area from the centre to the nearside A pillar of the screen; I don’t know if that also applies to the O License.
gardun:
In fact, I believe (note the qualifier) that the disk must be displayed within the area from the centre to the nearside A pillar of the screen
On the DVLA website they only say the disc must be displayed on the left-hand side of the vehicles windscreen, if the vehicle doesn’t have a wind screen it should be on the passenger side.
About whether having not tax effects insurance, I’ve been pulled several times over the years with no tax and mot but have always been insured, I was never ‘done’ for having no insurance, just a fine for the mot/tax.
plannerman:
The nub of the advice I received was that as long as the vehicle IS taxed (and the police/VOSA can check that easily enough) then you won’t get done for failure to display. Of course in our case, there was no question over the fact that the vehicles were taxed - it was just that we’d been told to send the discs away.
In the case in question, I would get hold of the hire company and get them to fax a copy of the disc down. Then at least you’ve got proof it has been taxed, even if it’ll be a few days befoe you get the disc. Without any proof I’d be a bit reluctant to use it.
plannerman, I agree that it’s very easy for the police/VOSA to check as you said, so that would take care of whether it is or isn’t taxed quite quickly. So that’s dealt with s.29(1)
Under s.33(2) though, I think you’d agree that there is a level 1 penalty available for failing to display. We’d be very brave (and possibly foolish) if we dared to predict whether they’d actually prosecute for it or not. I wouldn’t know, but maybe they have some discretion, if they find that the vehicle is taxed [compliant with s.29(1)] Interesting point though, given that the driver is sometimes counted as the “user.” My own objection to taking that vehicle out is based on not wanting my name written in a police notebook in connection with a possible offence.
) I’d say that’s plenty of time to receive the new disc .
but have always been insured, I was never ‘done’ for having no insurance, just a fine for the mot/tax.
Interesting point though, given that the driver is sometimes counted as the “user.” My own objection to taking that vehicle out is based on not wanting my name written in a police notebook in connection with a possible offence.