SORN (again, yawn, yawn)

[Nurse Julie]

I was catching up on some admin the other week and thought I would just check that all the bikes we have here off the road are still SORN'd. Now, a majority of them were but I have 3 that I SORN'd last year, I have the printouts showing the SORN reference numbers from DVLA and I know it is now continuous , ie, the SORN will remain until either the bike is taxed of a change of owner is registered but they are showing as non SORN'd. So I SORN'd them again the other day, I was given a SORN reference number again but having just checked their status again, they still show as not SORN !!!!. I have been in touch with DVLA and this was their response

Thank you for your enquiry received on 25/2/2017.
 Your case reference number is 00031380.

 It might be helpful if I explain that on the 31 January 1998 the law changed. Keepers are now required to notify DVLA if their vehicles are to be kept off the public road untaxed.

The scheme only applies to vehicles where the vehicle tax has expired on or after 31 January 1998. As your vehicle U*M***S was untaxed on this date, it does not fall into the Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) scheme. It will only become liable to SORN if it is re-taxed and then subsequently taken off the road.


I have contacted DVLA again asking why on all their documentation it says a vehicle must be taxed or SORN and nowhere does it state the above. I have also asked them what is the point of going through the process and being issued with a SORN reference number, for no reason at all. I will let you know what comes back from them.

Now, I may be the only person on the forum, or indeed the UK that does not know about the above but I doubt it very much.

[Chris400F]

I knew about this Julie - I have a bike in this category  - although I couldn't have told you the cut-off date.

As you say, there appears to be nothing on the DVLA site that actually tells you this.

It does seem that there is a hole in their system - logically it should either not let you apply for SORN if the vehicle doesn't need it, or if it does then that status should be preserved.

From memory I seem to recall that I tried to SORN the bike when I bought it in 2012 (didn't realise it was that long ago!) and only found out about this bit of the SORN regs when the system wouldn't let me SORN the bike. I haven't tried again so don't know what would happen now, sounds like I needn't bother trying.

[andut]

I'm sure it's not true, but I could understand it if to some it may almost appear that our good friends in DVLA have no idea what they're doing .......

Having recently taken delivery of a few boxes (hopefully) containing a 400/4 and also getting an updated V5 in my name, I attempted to SORN which appeared successful online - all good and hassle free.  A few days later, I too received a letter and informative booklet explaining that there is no need if the vehicle has not been taxed since 98.

A few more days pass and that friendly bunch at the DVLA kindly send me another letter explaining that my box of bits is no longer SORN and warned of financial risks of not doing so.  For the second time, I successfully SORNed and I assume all is well.

I like the fact that they keep in touch so regularly, and I trust that my regular payments for the various vehicles I own can keep up with their meticulous system administration and postal costs.

[Nurse Julie]

At least they keep in touch with you Andy, you must be a special customer Of DVLA. They didn't send me a letter explaining the age rule on a bike I registered in my name only 2 weeks ago, just the log book. This is one of the bikes I'm querying with them at present.