DVLA - unbelievable!

[Kingster]

This has to be plain WRONG, why would it be that you IVA a car under one vin only to have it changed! I would speak with VOSA they were very helpful and knowledgeable when I spoke with them.

Got a number?

[Westford]

Now called DVSA apparently! 01300 1239000 ..... I bet you have to go through the usual press 1 for vehicles etc.

[Kingster]

Couldn't really see what department would help with this once I'd heard all the options - only one that was close was IVA and I already have that?

 

Oh and it's 0300 1239000 - the one you gave is somewhere in America

[Westford]

Woops! Go the IVA route and explain what's happened, got to be worth a go?!

[Kingster]

Actually just got a call from supervisor at DVLA who says that "if it's a Q then it has to have a DVLA VIN number".

 

She was insistent that no Q's are ever issued without a new DVLA VIN and challenged me to provide her with reg numbers that had been!

 

I asked her if I could speak to a higher authority and she said no - she was as high as the public are allowed to go, but she'll ask if they would let me keep the VIN I have and get back to me.

[TableLeg]

This has to be one of the most ridiculous things I have heard in ages.

 

I hope you get it sorted soon.

 

Failing all else you could try this avenue..........

 

Contacting our Chief Executive

If you’re still unhappy with the response from the Customer Complaints Co-ordinator, you can contact DVSA’s Chief Executive. Our corporate office will independently review your complaint and provide a detailed response.

DVSA Chief Executive

DVSA Corporate Office

DVSA Corporate Office
2nd Floor
Berkeley House
Croydon Street
Bristol
BS5 0DA

Email vosa.corporateoffice@vosa.gsi.gov.uk

Phone 0117 954 3274

[Kingster]

The factory are on the case - so I'm leaving it with them for now.

 

Absolutely sick, I really am...

[Rhett Turner - Black Country AO]

I suspect as with most of these issues it's a jobsworth who understands part but not all of the process, when I Registered mine I had to fill in loads of forms that were applicable to the SVA process and not the IVA process.

 

Just found this 

8. Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

By law, all vehicles used on the public road must have a VIN. This may be lost when a vehicle is substantially rebuilt, particularly in the case of kit vehicles where the chassis or bodyshell may not have been stamped by the manufacturer. In these circumstances, the DVLA local office will issue a replacement VIN and an authorisation letter. The vehicle cannot be registered until we receive confirmation that the vehicle has been stamped with a VIN. (INF26 -Guidelines on how you can register kit cars and rebuilt or radically altered vehicles)

 

My guess that they are getting mixed up with "where the chassis or bodyshell may not have been stamped by the manufacturer" and where the chassis has a VIN stamped into it. 

 

Good luck in getting it sorted, I hope this does not sour the build and ownership experience. 

[Kingster]

Good luck in getting it sorted, I hope this does not sour the build and ownership experience. 

 

Thanks Rhett - no, it won't sour anything other than my feelings towards the DVLA!

 

I love my Westy and can't wait to get out in it

[bigals]

Keep at it, having had various fights with the Dvla, I can recommend sending a recorded letter to the chief executive as a last resort, they will never admit to any negligence but it helped them to come to a sensible conclusion, ie leaving me the hell alone and dropping there illegally imposed fines that were a result of there total negligence, it's often a case of gleaning small amounts of information to use to your advantage later on. Good luck, you will get there in the end

[Andy (Sycho)]

I know how you feel, but surly every Q that's been registered has Been done with a wf vin.

I can't belive the hastle you have to go though now, when I regestered my last car at the local office I wanted a new plate, but had got a second hand gearbox so they registered as a q so I could use it & said if I changed the gearbox they would put it on a new plate. And they did they were very helpful.

How times change.

At least you will be able to speak to mark on Monday & fingers crossed he will get to the bottom of it.

[Kit Car Electronics]

Sounds like the muppets have confused Vehicle Registration Number with Vehicle Identification Number - the rules stated on the Gov.UK website seem pretty clear and wouldn't require a replacement VIN.

I wonder if they've had a reorganisation and put the lunatics in charge...

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

I don't think that needed a reorganisation...

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

The kits and rebuilds department does seem to be completely off the rails though, from a laissez faire attitude to time while processing document - it's almost like they think "oh it's just a bunch of sad bearded blokes bolting weird looking cars together in sheds, it's not important, one more day won't matter", to completely random interpretations of the actual rules, which I don't think they actually understand.

 

Couple that with zero understanding of the the field they're in, outside their little corner so that they probably haven't even considered the broader implications of such mad cap ideas as grinding the chassis numbers off, where they are perfectly legitimate.

 

Shocking, and time for action.

[Kingster]

Indeed, the stroppy bint that I spoke to seemed to think that a VIN was totally unimportant other than as a unique number on a V5 and even said "so you don't mind a Q then?". I tried to explain that without a factory chassis number it wouldn't actually be a Westfield and she just snorted a derisory laugh. Then laughed again as I pointed out that the chassis could be damaged by such actions. "Nonsense, happens all the time" she sneered.

I should have asked if she knew the difference between a Caterham and a Haynes Roadster. They both look very much alike but the chassis makes one 5x more valuable.

In fact why not IVA a locost as a Caterham and tell the next owner that the DVLA insisted on providing the VIN!