Problem getting road tax.

[Plax]

Heres my dilemma, i have just got an mot done last month, thats fine. I have no insurance and only use the car once a month if that. Right now i havent used the car for two months. Problem i have right now, is that can't get a new car tax disc unless i forfeit paying for insurance for a year (which is pointless). So what should i do 1) SORN it, 2)SELL it, or 3) PAY for both. It's a reliable car (vw) 13 years old and has served me well...would be sad to see it go but don't have a driveway, damn!

You aren't in the position to go for option 1) as it is an offence to keep a vehicle that has been declared SORN on a public road.
You are also, as another poster has already mentioned, NOT allowed to keep a vehicle on a public road that does not have insurance.

http://get-quote.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=153

Things you need to be aware of when purchasing car insurance 1) You are legally required to have car insurance if you drive or leave your car on any public road in the UK. The cost of a serious accident, which results in the loss of life or permanent injury, can end up being in the millions of pounds. If you are found to be driving without valid motor insurance then you will face stiff penalties, and even a jail sentence.

So in your instance, as you don't have a driveway, your only legal options are to tax & insure your car or sell it. If I was in your shoes I'd sell up. The total monthly cost of keeping your car on the road (£400 Insurance, £115 tax) will be £42.91 excluding the yearly cost of an MOT and Petrol. So effectively it will cost you in excess of £42.91 to use it once a month as you have been doing. Can you use another means of transport (hire a car, get a lift or public transport etc) once a month that is cheaper than £42.91? If so it's a no brainer - get shot of the car.
If you are loathe to sell your car, do you have a friend or parents/siblings that have a garage or space on their driveway where you could keep your car (SORNed) until you want to use it on a regular basis?

 

[bonj2]

Oh Bonjy, you're having a bad week aren't you?

The thread author said that he bought insurance for a few days at a time from a particular firm that allowed it.

He thought that he couldn't tax the car using this cover.

I suggested an alternative.

There's no need to cancel his tax.

You're confused.

there's no NEED to, but he might aswell!

perhaps he hasn't even CONSIDERED cancelling the tax 'cos he doesn't know it's possible?
You've solved his insurance problem, by suggesting the alternative of using the cooling off period or using one of the temporary firms that are recognised as valid for road tax. Well done. Problem solved.
But there's another problem that he may not have thought of.
but I was just wanting to highlight two other things, (a) that isn't all this cancelling business a bit of a faff, and ( that if there's a whole calendar month in which he isn't using his car at all, then he might aswell cancel his tax and not pay road tax for that month. Which leads me on to the suggestion that he should try to compact all his car use into the same month if possible, rather than spreading it out and paying road tax every month.

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Still think you're missing the point Bonj. The suggestion about cancelling insurance is ONLY so the OP can get tax (I know, I know, it's not Road Tax).

The suggestion is to get a cover note to be able to get the 12 months tax, cancel the policy (but still have the tax) and then use the day-by-day insurance whenever the OP needs/wants it.

No cancelling over and over again, he's not trying to get 'free' insurance whenever he wants to use the car.

As people have pointed out though, it's illegal to keep the car uninsured on the public highway.

Easier to understand?

 

[bonj2]

Still think you're missing the point Bonj. The suggestion about cancelling insurance is ONLY so the OP can get tax (I know, I know, it's not Road Tax).

The suggestion is to get a cover note to be able to get the 12 months tax, cancel the policy (but still have the tax) and then use the day-by-day insurance whenever the OP needs/wants it.

No cancelling over and over again, he's not trying to get 'free' insurance whenever he wants to use the car.

As people have pointed out though, it's illegal to keep the car uninsured on the public highway.

Easier to understand?

I'm not missing the point - it's a fairly moot point anyway, but you're failing to understand that I'm suggesting a NEW point aswell. Not all the discussion has to be about whether the answer to the original question is correct or not.

 

[Ashtrayhead]

That's meaningless, I can only assume what it's supposed to mean is a barrage of pedanticity.
I was thinking of the situation in which, say, he wants to use his car 15 days apart. The insurance cooling off period is, say, 14 days. Before the first day, he has to apply for insurance, get tax, then cancel it after the first day, then a few days later, he has to get insurance AGAIN. Then cancel it AGAIN. Then cancel his road tax. Most people wouldn't bother cancelling it, then have a farce with the insurance company finding out they are getting stung through the nose for having exceeded the cooling off period. And anyway, how do we know that in the time it takes him to do all this messing around he could have earnt more than it would cost him anyway...

Not wishing to be a pedant, but the word you're looking for is 'pedantry'.