New V5C log book rules: full guide for car buyers and sellers ~ station of gear

New electronic system for the V5 log book document to speed up the process of selling and buying cars in the UK

2015-08-12 11:00

With tax discs and paper licence counterparts now history, the DVLA – in an effort to drive down paperwork – has modernised the V5C document, too. The new changes introduce an electronic online element to selling vehicles to traders or private buyers. It means sellers are no longer required to post their V5 vehicle logbook document to the DVLA after selling their car.

Read on for the full details of the DVLA's changes to the UK V5C document, and how they affect you when selling or buying a car.

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What do the V5 changes mean if you're selling your car?

When selling your car, you’re still required to fill in the V5C/2 section (the new keeper supplement) and hand it to the new keeper. But instead of filling in the rest of the relevant sections in the V5C logbook and sending them to DVLA through the post, a new electronic system has been created where you inform the DVLA online.

Once you’ve informed the DVLA of the changes to the keeper of the vehicle, you will receive an instant e-mail confirmation and a letter confirming the changes. If you’re buying a new car, you will also receive an e-mail confirmation (you must provide the DVLA an e-mail address to contact you with) and a new V5C certificate within five working days. If you sell your car to a dealer or motor trader, the procedure is exactly the same.

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After you've sold the vehicle, the Government will also refund any remaining tax you have left on it – under the new system tax is no longer transferable between owners.

What happens if you don’t have Internet access?

If computers aren’t your thing, the DVLA still accepts changes to the V5C document by post, though this is likely to take longer to confirm and process than the new electronic counterpart.

What are the changes to the V5C document?

The V5C document itself will remain in paper format – unlike tax discs and driving licence paper counterparts. However, once you’ve exchanged the V5C/2, informed the DVLA electronically of the registered keeper changes and received confirmation of the change, the DVLA advises you to destroy the rest of the V5C document.

Have you used the online system for the V5C document? Let us know how it went in the comments section below...

Martin Saarinen

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