DVLA Records ...

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geoberni
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DVLA Records ...

Post by geoberni »

Hi All
I mentioned many, many months ago in another topic far, far away that I had applied to DVLA for the history of my Moggie.

Well what a saga that turned out to be.

First application of a Form V888 with £5 Cheque for fee, produced no response, so emailed them and it had never arrived. :cry:

DVLA Lady who answered the email said to send another application, with cheque, but to mark it as FAO her personally so it didn't get opened in the mail room... did that.... left a month and then emailed.... it also had never arrived.... :cry: :cry:

DVLA Lady eventually agreed to do the request by email/pdf of form and waive the fee (neither cheque had been cashed).

Took another couple of months, but have eventually got the records they hold, taken from their old County Microfilm/Microfiche for the older stuff.
Car is a '55, but earliest Log Book they had was from '65 and then they only had one side.

The car has a non transferable Reg which I knew it got in '99 to replace an old '63 plate, but I never knew when it got the '63 A plate.

Turns out the original Reg was on the car until '91, when it was Cherished Number transferred and that's when it got the very wrong AFE996A plate. The original Reg was PKV*** which now resides on a 2 Ltr Blue Renault.


So now the really interesting bit, there was an error in the Chassis number that was evident on the '65 (handwritten) Log Book and then carried on with some other errors until only a few years ago.

The Plate on the car gives the following
Chassis FBA11 / ****85
Engine ****89

The '65 Log Book has
Chassis FBA11 / ****89
Engine ****89

From what I can see, the '65 Log Book has a new Road Fund Licence entry every 4 months, which would fit nicely with it being the 2nd Log Book, given the number of spaces for the Post Office to issue a Tax Disc. So I imagine the Clerk at the Lincolnshire County Council who issued the Log Book made a simple error reading the last 2 digits of the Chassis/Engine numbers.

Only in 2011 did the records finally get corrected, although at least 1 person did try about 20 years ago, without success, when they used a V62 to apply for a Log Book.

So it was quite a hassle to do, but satisfying in the end to discover the original Reg Number (originating in Coventry) and the tale of the incorrect Chassis Number.
Lets face it (aside from perhaps buying a classic like a Moggie) who ever looks at the VIN when you buy a car, you just check the Reg is correct on the Log Book.



I've edited this to change Preston to Coventry, as I had misinterpreted the 3 letter prefix PKV. It's the KV that's the Office Code, not the PK as kindly pointed out by a member who PM'd me. Many thanks. :oops:
Last edited by geoberni on Thu May 31, 2018 10:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
Basil the 1955 series II

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BrianHawley
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Re: DVLA Records ...

Post by BrianHawley »

Wow.

I'm really lucky to have every document and disc from the original sales invoice right up to today. Previous owners were all very fastidious.
Brian

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ianmack
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Re: DVLA Records ...

Post by ianmack »

I’ve heard plenty of DVLA tales of woe over the years but managing to ‘not receive’ two cheques, that’s a new one!
DAVIDMCCULLOUGH
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Re: DVLA Records ...

Post by DAVIDMCCULLOUGH »

Glad to hear that you got a response to the V888. My friend sent one off for his recently acquired Morris 10 and had his cheque returned quoting data protection of records.

I sent one off last year for my Austin 10/4 and got back some really interesting history :D


Too many Minors so little time.....
GavinL
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Re: DVLA Records ...

Post by GavinL »

I sent off two V888 forms recently - Midget and Minor. One was processed without problems, the other was returned as they ' are unable to provide details of previous owners'. I re-submitted stating on the form that I was not seeking details of previous owners,- that worked. So, I would recommend that to avoid disappointment you include this specific wording.
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geoberni
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Re: DVLA Records ...

Post by geoberni »

GavinL wrote: Thu May 31, 2018 8:15 am I sent off two V888 forms recently - Midget and Minor. One was processed without problems, the other was returned as they ' are unable to provide details of previous owners'. I re-submitted stating on the form that I was not seeking details of previous owners,- that worked. So, I would recommend that to avoid disappointment you include this specific wording.
Totally agree. Not only did I explain on the V888 that I wanted details of the vehicle history 'excluding personal details of owners' but I provided a covering letter too reiterating that. It's just that the 2 applications were never actioned.

For brevity of posting, I omitted from the tale above that it did actually get there the first time to only be returned a week later by someone quoting the same BS.
I returned it all with a fresh covering letter politely explaining my dissatisfaction that the person concerned had clearly not even bothered to read the form or letter, since I was not asking for personal details and had clearly stated that several times.
So it was actually sent 3 times, once rejected, twice not received.

I got back several copies of Log Books over the years, all from the microfilm records, but no other correspondence. Each Log Book has little blocks over the personal details to redact it, but some things like Office Stamps or sometimes the Town/City have been left visible.
I did get some letters with the car, mainly relating to changing from the '63 plate to the one it has now. It was the story of how it ended up with the '63 plate that I was really curious about.
I was surprised to find out that it had only gained that in the '90s.
Basil the 1955 series II

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