More grief about appalling DVLA

mikebeaches

mikebeaches

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An article in the Guardian today highlights the woes so many drivers are suffering at the moment with lots of issues at the DVLA.

It specifically indicates difficulties I've seen mentioned on here about getting campers re-taxed:-

"In the latest problem to hit the agency, the DVLA admitted in a letter sent to a reader that a “technical issue” means owners of some camper vans are currently unable to retax them using its website, phone assistance, or even if the owner visits the post office.

Anyone unable to tax their vehicle is not allowed to legally drive it. The DVLA says it is writing to the very small number of affected camper van owners telling them how to proceed."

www.theguardian.com

‘The service is appalling’: drivers face holdups as DVLA fails to send licences

Readers say their lives have been put on hold because of delays at the government agency
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

Not sure how it's all going to be sorted out? :unsure:
 
Lenny HB said:
The service has been absolute sh*t for years they are using pandemic as an excuse. All went to pot when they closed local offices but didn't take on extra staff to cover increased workload at DVLA.
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Agree, we used to have a local office in Bristol and the service was pretty good.

Any difficulties and it was easy for us to pop in and speak to a human, face to face, to sort out any issues. :unsure:
 
Has anyone tried to register a new motorhome recently?

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Lenny HB said:
The service has been absolute sh*t for years they are using pandemic as an excuse. All went to pot when they closed local offices but didn't take on extra staff to cover increased workload at DVLA.
Click to expand...
I totally agree, the local offices used to be a godsend, now it is horrible!
 
Lenny HB said:
The service has been absolute sh*t for years they are using pandemic as an excuse. All went to pot when they closed local offices but didn't take on extra staff to cover increased workload at DVLA.
Click to expand...
This is a theme with some companies and organisations. They use the “ worldwide pandemic “ as a generic excuse for any problems that occur . I am fed up with it now 😞
 
Puddleduck said:
Once again for anyone with a DVLA issue, and as long as you have at least attempted to go through their own complaints procedure PLEASE get your MP involved and ask him / her to refer your case to

www.ombudsman.org.uk

Welcome to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman | Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO)

www.ombudsman.org.uk www.ombudsman.org.uk

You may have to point out that this service exists as many MPs appear to be unaware of it.
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Trouble our MP has other things on his mind at the moment, Matt Hancock!!

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MPs are merely Orator's, of little practical use.
The right to physically protest is being eroded fast.
We deserve all we get if not willing to stand up and be counted.
 
mikebeaches said:
Agree, we used to have a local office in Bristol and the service was pretty good.

Any difficulties and it was easy for us to pop in and speak to a human, face to face, to sort out any issues. :unsure:
Click to expand...

That local DVLA asked me to produce a Yamaha moped that had been in storage, for inspection. On with the helmet and off I went. A bit of a nuisance but not too onerous. All was well and I got the V5 issued with a new registration. Mopeds were the old way to store a cherished registration number, before they thought of retention certificates.

Imagine this today, having to ride a moped from Bristol to Swansea so an official can verify it really exists! Yikes!
 
That particular article has caused me, or rather an old friend and neighbour who I watch out for, much grief too. He is currently suffering with severe anxiety attacks and the medication is taking it's time kicking in. Mean while his son, who is a bit hopeless, is having trouble getting a replacement licence after a successful medical and now his insurance company is saying they won't renew his insurance without sight of the new licence. He needs his van for work so that could be a real problem (but at least they have given him 2 weeks grace). But this is causing my friend to worry about his son, bringing on more attacks and I've spent several hours over the last few days sorting him out - I was up VERY early this morning answering a cry for help. Unfortunately he lives on his own and has no other family to help him out - I think his basic problem is the same as most of us, lockdown causing a lack of social inter-action.

(You probably are not much interested in all that, but I feel better for getting it off my chest).

There is a lot of criticism of the DVLA, mainly because people simply cannot get what they consider the essentials of life sorted out e.g. replacement licences. And now they are not even answering the phone. But little mention is made of the industrial action they are taking in an effort to get the problem of short-staffing sorted out. I'm sure the majority of DVLA staff are very concerned but in the end they have to resort to causing chaos in an effort to get recognised, which is of course their right no matter what anyone else may think. What is the solution? Well we've all got our own ideas so I won't propound any more.

But please, remember that "DVLA" is not an entity itself, it's made up of regular human beings, just like you and me, who are doing their best but in the end failing miserably due to no fault of their own. IMO articles such as that referred to are not very helpful and only serve to inflame the passions of the "great unwashed".

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I opted to pay for my second road fund tax by standing order / direct debit. It went through automatically at the end of May and my Autotrail was re-taxed with no DVLA issue whatsoever! No problem! My driving licence will be reviewed in November when I will be 76 so there may be a story to tell then!
 
Re the local DVLA offices, I had two good experiences with the Peterborough office, with the latter concerning the MH which had been registered with the wrong classification, ie, PLG instead of PHG. I wa asked to take it down for them to have a look for themselves. I explained that their car park was too small to park the MH safely, and that I would need to occupy 3 x chargeable parking spaces outside their offices. I invited the operative to come to us for a look, whereupon I would pop the kettle on and get the biscuits out. He jumped at the chance of getting out of the office. On arrival, he rang the doorbell, and by the time I had answered it, he was satisfied that indeed the vehicle had been wrongly registered from day one. He sorted out the paperwork, and arranged a refund of excess RFL payments already made by us, and went away happy after his coffee and biscuits. (y)

I'm afraid I cannot sing the same praises of DVLA Swansea over the up plating of the Flair which took many weeks, with them saying that the documents were lost. :mad: Once I had provided them copies via email, along with proof of delivery complete with a signature, they changed their tune, and had the updated V5 out to me within a couple of days. Easy peasy when they try. ;)

Cheers,

Jock. :)
 
mikebeaches said:
An article in the Guardian today highlights the woes so many drivers are suffering at the moment with lots of issues at the DVLA.

It specifically indicates difficulties I've seen mentioned on here about getting campers re-taxed:-

"In the latest problem to hit the agency, the DVLA admitted in a letter sent to a reader that a “technical issue” means owners of some camper vans are currently unable to retax them using its website, phone assistance, or even if the owner visits the post office.

Anyone unable to tax their vehicle is not allowed to legally drive it. The DVLA says it is writing to the very small number of affected camper van owners telling them how to proceed."

www.theguardian.com

‘The service is appalling’: drivers face holdups as DVLA fails to send licences

Readers say their lives have been put on hold because of delays at the government agency
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

Not sure how it's all going to be sorted out? :unsure:
Click to expand...
Small number.BUSBY.
 
SpeedyDux said:
That local DVLA asked me to produce a Yamaha moped that had been in storage, for inspection. On with the helmet and off I went. A bit of a nuisance but not too onerous. All was well and I got the V5 issued with a new registration. Mopeds were the old way to store a cherished registration number, before they thought of retention certificates.

Imagine this today, having to ride a moped from Bristol to Swansea so an official can verify it really exists! Yikes!
Click to expand...
It's not their fault that Government funding and cuts forced them to close local offices.BUSBY.
 
mikebeaches said:
Agree, we used to have a local office in Bristol and the service was pretty good.

Any difficulties and it was easy for us to pop in and speak to a human, face to face, to sort out any issues. :unsure:
Click to expand...
Which is now the case with every company you deal with. It's called progress 🤣🤣🤣 BUSBY.

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I decided that, although I‘m not yet obliged to change my old paper licence, it would be prudent to have some official photo ID for Europe. So I applied on-line for a photo licence. Applied on Thursday, paid £20 and received the licence in less than a week (by 1 day). So that department is working ok. On the other hand the DWP………….😟
 
busby said:
It's not their fault that Government funding and cuts forced them to close local offices.BUSBY.
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I do accept that.

However, I recall a dreadful interaction with DVLA Swansea, even when the regional offices were still operational. I had a car with incorrect emissions figure on the V5. I was astonished by how downright rude the adviser I spoke to was, and without any provocation from me.

On that occasion I wrote to make a formal complaint and requested the tape of the conversation be reviewed. Eventually, I received a half-hearted apology, but it still took me a further 18 months and a lot more faffing about to get the V5 corrected, so I was not being overcharged on road tax (VED).

But as said, always received good service from the local office - unfortunately, they couldn’t sort the incorrect classification on V5. :unsure:
 
I have been trying to renew my Driving licence & C1, which runs out in mid June, you can apply 90days before its due, so I filled al forms in, got medical & Eye test done, sent all in Mid March, in mid May they sent some more forms to fill on the letter it said Must be sent back in 14 days from letter date? our the application would be Void? already lost 7days when I received it sent it straight back, it now July no reply yet, rang to day only to be told when they have decided to renew it they will let me Know, what a shower of S---.
they only just renewed a friends that ran out in January 2020.
 
Kiters70 said:
I have been trying to renew my Driving licence & C1, which runs out in mid June, you can apply 90days before its due, so I filled al forms in, got medical & Eye test done, sent all in Mid March, in mid May they sent some more forms to fill on the letter it said Must be sent back in 14 days from letter date? our the application would be Void? already lost 7days when I received it sent it straight back, it now July no reply yet, rang to day only to be told when they have decided to renew it they will let me Know, what a shower of S---.
they only just renewed a friends that ran out in January 2020.
Click to expand...
Same here, and it seems we are not the only ones,
DVLA, NFFP, Waste of space

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Many years ago I worked for a County Council and I can assure you most of our time was spent coping with the stupid while the people who filled in forms correctly had to wait their turn. Date of birth was always a major hold up and address confused many.
 
I’ve been waiting for V5 for new scooter, dealer rang the DVLA yesterday and they said they hadn’t received the application…he pointed out to them it was in the same envelope as one they have processed. So annoying as I bought it way back in May so we could put in MH garage for trip on 12th July, no chance now.
 
I've applied for C1 renewal. They have it so I don't care when they return it. However I'd feel differently if I intended go overseas.
 
Puddleduck said:
Once again for anyone with a DVLA issue, and as long as you have at least attempted to go through their own complaints procedure PLEASE get your MP involved and ask him / her to refer your case to
Click to expand...
Have you tried going through the DVLA complaints procedure, it took me 3 months to get to the stage of being able to take it up with local MP.
The final stage of the complaints procedure is to go to an independent review of the complaint, who can only comment on any problem and can't make the DVLA do anything about it.
 
Dvla are a headache ive still not got the taxation class changed on my vario build

I sent off the v5 etc with it filled out ...i got a new v5 in my name but still down as bus despite it having only 2 Seats and an HGV mot. ... they are useless.

Dvsa on the other hand were mostly very helpful

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