Churchill magazine

Tips when taxing your car

Updated on: 18 January 2021

tax car

You can tax your car online when you’re its registered keeper, providing DVLA has a record of your name, address and any changes you’ve made to the car itself. Just go to gov.uk and it’ll guide you through the process. You can then pay by debit, credit card or Direct Debit.

You can also tax it over the phone by calling DVLA on 0300 123 4321, although you won’t be able to pay using Direct Debit. An electronic check will be made to confirm that you have the necessary insurance, MOT, and entitlement to disability exemption (if appropriate).

Or you could go to any post office that deals with vehicle tax. Just remember to take payment with you, or your bank details to set up Direct Debit.

What you’ll need

As well as your car’s registration number, you’ll also need:

  • The 16-digit reference number printed in the yellow box on the front of your renewal reminder (V11). You’ll either have this from your Vehicle Licence Application (when you applied for your driver’s licence) or if you’ve declared your car off the road (SORN).

 OR

  • The 11-digit reference number found on the front of your Vehicle Registration Certificate (V5C), otherwise known as your vehicle log book. If you’ve only just bought your car, you’ll need the green ‘new keeper’ slip from its log book.

What happens next?

As you no longer need to display a tax disc, your car is taxed as soon as your payment has been confirmed. You’ll receive confirmation with a reference number from DVLA.

To double check your car has been taxed, or to find out how much tax you’ll need to pay for your car, try these government sites:

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