Untaxed and uninsured vehicles in use - DVLA/police useless?

[user2375]

I have reported a car that I saw driving around dangerously a few times in my area in London to the DVLA as I checked online and it is untaxed and no MOT (so most likely no insurance and even if it has insurance, it would be invalid because of no MOT). I have now reported it three times in the space of 6 months (road tax was due last October). It is still being driven around, still not taxed. I don't understand it as the DVLA would have the address of the car so could easily send someone or inform the police that they are driving illegally and dangerously (driving speaking on mobile whilst driving past primary school). I'm wondering what the DVLA actually does when someone reports an untaxed vehicle, does anybody know as they seem really useless.

I am just wondering what is going on? It seems like it is very easy to drive around without the right requirements. Since the paper tax discs were phased out it seems that vehicles can drive around untaxed/MOTd/insured with impunity and yet again law abiding drivers have to pay more in road taxes and insurances to pay for all these people that the police and DVLA can't seem to track down/fine etc. It's a shambles.

Is this someone that you know, OP? It does sound a bit like you are waging a campaign against someone.

I imagine that the Police can only act when they see it being driven around, not from a report from a third party.

Disagree Cotswold. We have it around here, transit van that is consistently seen parked around the village and on multiple occasions caught in peoples gardens and outbuildings trying to steal. Van is untaxed, no MOT or insurance, we know where it is parked overnight and the police have seemingly no interest in visiting them.

Nobody I know. I don't know if I am "waging a campaign" against someone who is driving untaxed and uninsured, erratically by a primary school whilst speaking on their phone. I just want the DVLA/police to do their job so I don't have to worry about me or my kids being knocked over by drivers like this. Presumably this is the right thing to do as they are commiting a crime by driving without these requirements and they are driving dangerously by the school (I had to jump out of their way as they drove past me and my kids at speed - that is why I took note of their licence).

I reported an unlicensed driver to the police, told them what vehicle he was driving and where he was going, nothin done

If it is untaxed and uninsured, it is rather unlikely that if is registered to the correct person / address, in which case there is not a lot the police can do, unless they spot it randomly. If you know that it is always in a regular place at a regular time, that might help the police.

But that's the whole point. If there is no way for the police to stop these people unless they know the address or they happen to come across them whilst out on patrol, then it is a rather toothless policy and people are likely to get away with driving around untaxed and unlicensed. Surely it would be worth putting more patrols on the road especially for this kind of thing as it would bring in money and stop potentially dangerous drivers too?

You'd think with all the ANPR/CCTV we are supposed to have, it'd drive past one that would flag it up at least once a day

OP, in your first post you said

I have now reported it three times in the space of 6 months (road tax was due last October).

Yes, I think that's a campaign. That's a lot of reporting.

It's still the Police you need. Suggest one of the number plate recognition vans to them (or the school, may sort out any parking problems in the short term).