UK Registration arrives!

Well after a fairly simple, but slow process, I finally get a UK number plate.
With the bike being over 10 years old, it helped enormously as it didn’t need “type approval” – I’ve no idea what the process would have been had it been needed, but it sounded tricky.
All I had to do, was get an MOT, based on the chassis number….except not many places doing bike MOTs because of the new regs for using computerised system…so this took a while to get done, but many thanks to Mick Surmans motorcycles in Aylesbury.
Then needed insurance, also based on the chassis number. I did manage to add this on to my existing insurance for just £200.
Along with the above, I just needed to fill in a simple form from the DVLA plus a VAT 414, show the German registration doc and pay my money……..
However, the VAT414 is a crap form and when I phoned the VAT office to ask what was expected in the ambiguous sections, the chap agreed it was a crap form. Eg.
Name and address of vehicle owner…….me (now I have bought it)
Name and address to transfer vehicle to…..er….also me !!??
…along with many other quirky bits.
However, when handed to the DVLA – they didn’t seem too fussed what was on it, and I doubt the VAT could work it out anyway…BUT…..my insurance docs were wrong ! They had only entered part of the chassis number….as the last 6 digits of the chassis number are R100GS (coincidentally the model of bike) they omitted those 6. However, the DVLA believe that the last 6 digits are the “unique” part of the number, so wouldn’t accept it.
Called the insurers, gave amended details, awaited new forms, only to find number was still incomplete and had a digit missing in the middle.
Requested another amendment, at which point the chap on the phone explained that there were only 10 digits available on the computer and my C/N was too long. So we went for the last 10 digits (6 of which being R100GS).
Back into Oxford DVLA who were happy with all my forms and relieved me of just £100 (£38 registration fee & £62 road tax).
Paperwork arrived a week later ! BINGO.

The next instalment is here
Posted on 21. July 2006 by micki

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