Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing ownership records, alongside registered keeper details on V5C documents in the context of present lack of ownership documentation allowing people to change ownership or keepership of a vehicle without requesting checks.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The vehicle register held by the DVLA, is not a register of legal title or ownership of vehicles.
Based on the latest available data, the DVLA is confident that just over 92% of the keepers on record are contactable and traceable based on the information held.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing ownership records, alongside registered keeper details, on V5C documents.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) maintains a register of vehicles and their keepers in the United Kingdom. The purpose of the vehicle register is to assist in revenue collection, road safety, law enforcement and to record who is responsible for the vehicle’s day-to-day use. The vehicle register held by the DVLA, is not a register of legal title or ownership of vehicles.
The registered keeper of a vehicle can be an individual or a corporate organisation, and they are legally responsible for notifying the DVLA that they have disposed of the vehicle and for notifying them who the new keeper is. Based on the latest available data, the DVLA is confident that just over 92% of the keepers on record are contactable and traceable based on the information held.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many V5C forms were administered by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in 2022.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
During 2022, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA):
a) issued 16,573,304 V5C (vehicle registration certificates). These will include V5Cs issued following a change of vehicle keeper, change of address or change of vehicle details as well as the first registration of a vehicle.
b) administered 5,521 VTL310 forms (replacement trade plates or change of address of the trade plate holder).
c) received 6,033 V267 forms (declaration of newness for the registration of a new vehicle).
d) received 2,706,957 statutory off road notifications.
The length of time taken to deal with a driving licence application where a medical condition(s) has been notified depends on the condition(s) involved and whether further information is required from third parties, for example doctors or other healthcare professionals, before a decision on whether to issue a licence can be made.
To reduce waiting times for customers, the law was changed on 20 July 2022 to widen the pool of healthcare professionals who can provide medical information to support an application for a driving licence. The DVLA has also recruited more staff and opened customer service centres in Swansea and Birmingham which are focused on medical applications.
The DVLA has introduced a simplified licence renewal process for some medical conditions that has significantly reduced the need for further information from medical professionals and enabled more licensing decisions to be made based on the information provided by the driver. The DVLA is looking at adding more medical conditions to this process.
It is important to note that the majority of applicants renewing an existing licence will be able to continue driving while their application is being processed, providing they have not been told not to drive by a doctor or optician.
The DVLA does not record occupancy capacity on site daily. Around 58 per cent of the DVLA’s 6,312 staff work all their contracted hours in the office as their roles cannot be carried out remotely. The remaining 42 per cent of staff work a minimum of two days a week in the office, in line with wider civil service rules.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many V267 forms were processed by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in 2022.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
During 2022, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA):
a) issued 16,573,304 V5C (vehicle registration certificates). These will include V5Cs issued following a change of vehicle keeper, change of address or change of vehicle details as well as the first registration of a vehicle.
b) administered 5,521 VTL310 forms (replacement trade plates or change of address of the trade plate holder).
c) received 6,033 V267 forms (declaration of newness for the registration of a new vehicle).
d) received 2,706,957 statutory off road notifications.
The length of time taken to deal with a driving licence application where a medical condition(s) has been notified depends on the condition(s) involved and whether further information is required from third parties, for example doctors or other healthcare professionals, before a decision on whether to issue a licence can be made.
To reduce waiting times for customers, the law was changed on 20 July 2022 to widen the pool of healthcare professionals who can provide medical information to support an application for a driving licence. The DVLA has also recruited more staff and opened customer service centres in Swansea and Birmingham which are focused on medical applications.
The DVLA has introduced a simplified licence renewal process for some medical conditions that has significantly reduced the need for further information from medical professionals and enabled more licensing decisions to be made based on the information provided by the driver. The DVLA is looking at adding more medical conditions to this process.
It is important to note that the majority of applicants renewing an existing licence will be able to continue driving while their application is being processed, providing they have not been told not to drive by a doctor or optician.
The DVLA does not record occupancy capacity on site daily. Around 58 per cent of the DVLA’s 6,312 staff work all their contracted hours in the office as their roles cannot be carried out remotely. The remaining 42 per cent of staff work a minimum of two days a week in the office, in line with wider civil service rules.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to allow Ukrainian refugees to use their Ukrainian-registered cars in the UK without the need to register those cars with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency within six months of arrival; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Foreign registered vehicles brought temporarily into the UK are exempt from UK registration and licensing requirements for up to six months in any 12-month period. After this period and to comply with road safety legislation, any foreign vehicle must be registered with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. The Government recognises the unique circumstances that many Ukrainians have encountered when fleeing their home country and in response His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs is reviewing import duty relief applications. I have assigned dedicated resource across my Department to support those that need to register their vehicle.
Asked by: Jacob Rees-Mogg (Conservative - North East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to help ensure that motorists who dispose of a vehicle are not subject to repeated police enquiries when the buyer has not returned a V5 form; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The person disposing of a vehicle is legally required to inform the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) that they no longer have the vehicle. They are also required to provide the details of the person or company who has taken possession of the vehicle. If the person disposing of the vehicle does not inform the DVLA, their details will remain on the vehicle record and they may receive enquiries related to the vehicle.
The easiest way to inform the DVLA is to use the online service available on GOV.UK. Where a person has been contacted by the police or other authority about a vehicle for which they are no longer the keeper, they should inform the DVLA. I would be delighted to meet with you to discuss the V5 form and the transfer of vehicle ownership further.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of registered keepers of vehicles are not readily traceable or contactable.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Based on the latest available data, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is confident that 92.44% (46,707,158) of the keepers on record are contactable and traceable based on the information held on the DVLA’s records.
Of the remaining 7.56% of vehicles, 5.85% (2,957,366) are shown on the DVLA’s records as being ‘in trade’. These are vehicles for which the DVLA has been notified that the previous keeper has sold or disposed of the vehicle to a motor trader. Until the DVLA is notified of a new keeper they will remain shown as “in trade”. This is a legitimate status for a vehicle record until the vehicle is sold on or otherwise disposed of by the motor trader.
A further 1.36% (686,074) are vehicles that are taxed or notified as being kept off the road but there is no current registered keeper on the DVLA’s records. In some cases these will be vehicles which have recently been sold and the DVLA has not yet been notified of the new keeper.
The remaining 0.35% (175,782) are vehicles for which the DVLA does not have a full address on record which may make tracing a keeper more difficult.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the conclusion of the Independent Complaints Assessors on the impact of his Department's policy on personalised number plates in their Annual Report 2020-21, published on 25 December 2021, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of amending the Retention and Sale of Registration Marks Regulations 2015 to allow more flexibility for customers wishing to retain personalised licence plates.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The law allows customers to purchase the right to display a personalised registration number on their vehicle and requires the right to that registration number to be renewed before it expires. Entitlement to registration numbers under this scheme lasts for ten years. Reminders are sent to customers in advance of expiry. If an application is not made to extend the entitlement, the right to display the personalised registration number is lost. There are no plans to change the current legal requirements in this area.
Asked by: Aaron Bell (Conservative - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with international counterparts on improving data sharing between international vehicle registration databases.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Department for Transport officials engage with a range of international counterparts on issues including data sharing between international vehicle registration databases, both in the context of wider negotiations and in response to specific queries from international partners.
While it would not be appropriate to comment on the details of these conversations, the UK is committed to honouring its international obligations.
The Secretary of State for Transport has not been involved directly in discussions on this matter.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to grant relief from the rules requiring vehicles registered overseas to be registered and taxed in the UK after a maximum period of six months for Ukrainian refugees arriving in the UK in private vehicles; and, if they do not have such plans, whether they will extend the six month period for vehicle registration and taxation until the first to occur of (1) an application by Ukrainian refugees for permanent residence in the UK, or (2) three years after their arrival in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is determined to ensure that Ukrainian arrivals encounter a warm reception in the UK, and the Department for Transport is presently engaging with DVLA colleagues to explore policy options, including possible options surrounding the vehicle registration fees for Ukrainian plated vehicles entering the UK.
My Department has also worked with the transport sector to provide wider assistance to those fleeing here from the conflict. Since mid-March 2022, all Ukrainians that enter the UK with the appropriate visa can travel on public transport from their port of entry to their end destination at no cost if travel occurs within 48 hours of arrival. This includes rail, bus and all Transport for London routes. To date, over 2,200 rail journeys have been made via the free onward travel offer, and many more on UK bus, coach and tram services. On the 20 June, this scheme was extended for a further six months.