To ask this favour?

[EliandmE]

I'm genuinely not sure if IBU so here goes:

I bought a car about 5 months ago. Private sale via a local Facebook group, I had quite a bit of contact with the seller before and after and she was really lovely. The car had a private reg which wasn't for sale, I'm not sure why she didn't swap the plates before advertising the car but I'm hardly Miss Organised so I'm in no place to judge. I had the car for about 2 months while she waited for the new plates/reg form to arrive from the DVLA, when it finally came she swapped the plates and crucially left me with the reg form.

Every other car I've bought the seller has sent off one part of the reg form while I've kept a small slip to prove I'm the new owner. What I hadn't realised was that the seller had given me the entire form, and it was still in her name. I should have checked obviously, but I just shoved the whole thing in the 'important documents drawer' and forgot about it.

Until it came to renewing the tax disc. Which I did online. And then I sat back and waited for it to arrive... After a week I checked and realised my mistake, the tax disc has gone to the seller who is still the registered keeper of the car, arghhhhh.

I got in touch with the seller and she had the new tax disc, I offered to drive over to her to collect it at a time/place of convenience or reimburse her for the postage if it was easier for her to send it me. She said that was fine and she was happy to help.

We tried to arrange to meet at the beginning of the week but that didn't work out so I asked her to post it instead, she said she would do that after work on Tuesday.

Four days later I've had nothing in the post and she is not replying to my (increasingly frantic) messages. I appreciate she is doing me a favour but I'm now driving round without displaying a valid tax disc and I'm 8 days in to the 14 days grace period. If I have to buy another one that's £200 written off potentially just because she couldn't be bothered to find a post box.

So AIBU for getting annoyed that a virtual stranger won't do me a favour that would take her a few minutes but could cost me hundreds of pounds?

WIBU to send her message explaining that if I have to buy another disc then I can't take the kids away next weekend because that's all our holiday spending money gone (she knows I have 3 small dc) or is that laying it on too thick?

I don't think it was for the seller to send the form off. I think that was your responsibility. I have been supplied with the document from the dealer I bought my used car from, complete with previous owner's details. It was up to me to send it off.

Tbh I can imagine it being a pain to get around to doing this. I rarely have stamps to hand and often shove letters in my bag and forget to post them. Why not just tell her you'll be there at {insert time} and to let you know if inconvenient? I'm pretty sure that it's your mistake.

According to google Lapsed it is the sellers responsibility to send off the V5 form. But I hold my hands up I should have checked.

I have tried offering a time I can come over or meet her at a convenient place, she just doesn't reply. Which takes us back to the doorstepping idea...

Oh and I completely accept it's my mistake. I'm just annoyed that having said she would help she has left me in the lurch, when it really would be very little inconvenience to her. And this is after I gave up my time to meet her months after the sale so that she could change the plates and get her private reg back.

Something could have happened, she may have had a family emergency. Think about these things first before you get angry :)

I would email her and inform her that you have checked with the dvla and as the car is still registered to her if a fine is issued for not having the tax disk displayed it will be sent to her.

If she doesn't reply by tomorrow I would go and park outside her house and stay there until you see her/she answers the door to get the tax disk.

Very true Alex. In truth I'm more angry with myself than her. But thats not nearly as satisfying.

The car is taxed and you can drive it. You tax a car, not the person driving it, so as for not displaying a valid disc that doesnt matter. You are waiting for it in the post. You are fine.
the only issue is the registration and thats the big issue.
This all came from mrjean who is a police sergeant

for insurance, you just phone your insurance co and say you have changed cars, they will amend the policy (unless they decline because you have sold a Skoda and bought a Ferrari) and think of some reason to charge you a bit extra. You will keep your no-claims bonus and the expiry date will stay the same.

In the event that you have still got two cars, they will give you a temporary extension to cover them both, I think I paid about £20 per week while I was selling my old car last summer.

You must insure and tax all cars you own that are used or parked on the road, or that have not been SORNed