Driving car home with no tax

Megatooth

I live in Galway and I am about to buy a private car down in Limerick. The car is out of tax for many months and I want to drive it home legally. I have the insurance ready to activate when I go to collect the car.
I am wondering is there any way to tax the car without waiting a few days for the change of ownership? Or even to get proof that I am trying to tax the car.

I have no problem waiting, the only issue is that I am wary of giving a private seller from Donedeal a deposit . The guy seems genuine but I am listening to people's advice on scams.

Is there something that I am missing here? My driving instructor told me I can drive home and that the guards won't do me if I just bought the car. If so then what is the best proof? A picture of the logbook?

Megatooth

Also, I have searched a lot online but can only find old threads or conflicting info

picture of the logbook may help yeah. Gardai unlikely to care (although ever since the breathalyzer craic they are going harder on everyone, much to the delight of the various towing companies around the place).

Technically it's illegal. They might just ask you to call down to the station within X amount of time with the tax done and a logbook to show date of sale.

Stanford

""My driving instructor told me I can drive home and that the guards won't do me if I just bought the car.""........I think you're driving instructor should stick to the day job!

Its illegal and if caught you have to rely on the Garda involved to give you a break which he/she may or may not.

bazz26

Can you go into the motor tax office with the seller, do the transfer of ownership and tax the car while your there?

Megatooth

Stanford wrote: »

""My driving instructor told me I can drive home and that the guards won't do me if I just bought the car.""........I think you're driving instructor should stick to the day job!

Its illegal and if caught you have to rely on the Garda involved to give you a break which he/she may or may not.

Thanks everyone. So tell me? What is the correct way to do this? If I can't bring the car home legally then I don't want to pay some guy in Limerick 2000 quid and come back up to Galway empty handed and wait until the ownership is changed over to tax it? I could be scammed!

It just seems like I am missing something. How do people usually go about this? (Legally)

Silent Running

I suppose you could have it picked up by a tow truck and have it delivered to you.

I would just drive it home and deal with a Garda stop if it happened.

Megatooth

Silent Running wrote: »

I suppose you could have it picked up by a tow truck and have it delivered to you.

I would just drive it home and deal with a Garda stop if it happened.

Thank you for the suggestion. Im glad someone has given an alternatige. I looked in to it and it seems awful expensive though. Do normal people usually do this?
It seems like everywhere I look people say it's illegal to drive with no tax and they don't give an alternative apart from chancing it.

Seems like the law doesn't give people who want to stay within the law much options..

Megatooth

bazz26 wrote: »

Can you go into the motor tax office with the seller, do the transfer of ownership and tax the car while your there?

I'd definitely do that if it's possible. Do you or anyone else know if it is?

colm_mcm

It was a few years ago anyway.

artanevilla

Megatooth wrote: »

Thank you for the suggestion. Im glad someone has given an alternatige. I looked in to it and it seems awful expensive though. Do normal people usually do this?
It seems like everywhere I look people say it's illegal to drive with no tax and they don't give an alternative apart from chancing it.

Seems like the law doesn't give people who want to stay within the law much options..

The option to stay within the law is to either buy a taxed car, or tow it home.

You'll probably be fine, you'd want to meet a Guard on a bad day but they would be perfectly entitled to do you.

Gary Owen

It’s a motorway all the way down from Galway to limerick.
Chances of being stopped are slim .
I’d just drive it back and tax it when you get the log book .

I wouldn't bother my hole but can you not tax it online before you buy it?

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This post has been deleted.

colm_mcm

BrownFinger wrote: »

I wouldn't bother my hole but can you not tax it online before you buy it?

It would be taxed in the previous owners name, you’d be using the last 6 digits on the sellers VRC. but you can change the delivery address online alright.
You wouldn’t get the disc there and then of course, and the offence is non display. If you had proof of taxing online, it would be very strange to get a fine.

That said, you would be very unlucky to get fined in the first place once you can prove you’d just got the car.

If it’s a done deal and you trust the seller completely, you could tax the car now, get the disc and have it with you when you collect. You would owe tax from when the tax expired, unless the seller has a SORD done and the car is officially off the road.

Mr.Frame

Gary Owen wrote: »

It’s a motorway all the way down from Galway to limerick.
Chances of being stopped are slim .
I’d just drive it back and tax it when you get the log book .

It might be a motorway , but the driver still has to come off the motorway and drive into his estate.
Gardai do have unmarked cars patrolling the motorway and are fitted with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR).

My understanding is a Garda can take the car if its not insured or taxed

sexmag

Have you bought a car before?

When you go to buy you have to fill out the logbook with all your details and then the previous owner posts it. You then wait for the new log book to be sent to your house.

Once that's done you can tax the car and pick it up legally

Once you've filled out the log book the previous owner makes no benefit from trying to scam you by taking your money and not sending the log book off

Megatooth

sexmag wrote: »

Have you bought a car before?

When you go to buy you have to fill out the logbook with all your details and then the previous owner posts it. You then wait for the new log book to be sent to your house.

Once that's done you can tax the car and pick it up legally

Once you've filled out the log book the previous owner makes no benefit from trying to scam you by taking your money and not sending the log book off

I haven't bought a car before. Thank you sexmag ,that makes things clearer. So basically once I know the logbook is sent off then I'm pretty much safe as the car is going to be legally in my name?

zoe 3619

If he taxes online before buying he'll be covering the many months of back tax.
I'd certainly chance it without the tax.Have a picture on your phone of the signed and dated log book,and a screenshot of communication with the insurance company showing the date cover started.
If stopped,most guards are reasonable if you're not spinning a line.
At worst you're risking a fine,which would probably be cheaper than a tow truck.

colm_mcm

Small problem with that though, if you were selling a car, would you send off the logbook unless you had been paid in full? As a buyer, would you pay in full without taking the car?

tabby aspreme

Drive it home you will be fine, I bought a van last year which had not been taxed for a year , I was stopped a few days later and showed the gardai a photocopy of the logbook and the email from the insurance company with the time and date I was covered from, I was told to produce the insurance cert within10 days, no questions asked about the tax. A few days later I got a fine from a parking warden for no tax displayed which I successfully appealed, as I had not got the logbook back from Shannon

selous

I'll throw a curve ball here, buy the car, drive it home, tax the car, As when you tax the car, it's backdated to the beginning of the month you bought the car, So if you get stopped by the Gardaí on the day you buy it, eg 20th of this month, you will be paying the tax from the 1st of August.

Buy a brand new car they're not taxed when they come off the parking lot.

On your tax renewal you have 30 days from expiry to renew (before you get into the next month, then arrears apply)

So drive the car home, you can prove your the new owner if your stopped, but DO get the insurance before you drive.
Best of luck and happy motoring into the future.

zoe 3619

Megatooth wrote: »

I haven't bought a car before. Thank you sexmag ,that makes things clearer. So basically once I know the logbook is sent off then I'm pretty much safe as the car is going to be legally in my name?

Well,technically the car won't be in your name until the logbook arrives at the shannon office and is processed,so a couple of days after posting.
While it's in the old owner's name the back tax has to be paid.When it becomes registered to you,you only pay from the begining of the month in which you bought it.

colm_mcm

selous wrote: »

Buy a brand new car they're not taxed when they come off the parking lot.

On a new car, you’re liable for tax from the beginning of the month the car is registered in. You can do a SORD the same as you can on a used car.

Megatooth

Thanks everyone. Very helpful Info. I'm not really worried about a fine or anything, it's just that as the tax is out for over 3 months, I was worried as I heard the Guards may, but probably not, seize the car.

I basically want the least amount of hassle as possible.

Sadb

tabby aspreme wrote: »

Drive it home you will be fine, I bought a van last year which had not been taxed for a year , I was stopped a few days later and showed the gardai a photocopy of the logbook and the email from the insurance company with the time and date I was covered from, I was told to produce the insurance cert within10 days, no questions asked about the tax. A few days later I got a fine from a parking warden for no tax displayed which I successfully appealed, as I had not got the logbook back from Shannon

I too got a parking fine a few days after buying a car with no tax and successfully appealed also.

Sleeper12

If it were me I wouldn't be worried driving it home so long as it is insured and roadworthy.

I'd also drive sensibly and below the speed limit. If stopped I'd yes gard & no gard him /her to death.

The only way I see it backfiring it bad driving & bad attitude to the Garda. I can't stress enough that having insurance is the big thing here

KatyMac

Sadb wrote: »

I too got a parking fine a few days after buying a car with no tax and successfully appealed also.

This happened to me as well. I also got a summons in the post saying the car was illegally parked in Killarney on a date that was several weeks before I bought it! I rocked up to the Guards with my dated bill of sale and also headed into the county council. Both accepted the change over of ownership date. So, I'm inclined to think as long as the car is insured you are safe enough... would it be worth the while trundling into your nearest Guarda station and making inquiries??

dieselbug

I wouldn't worry about it too much.

When you do the transfer with the seller you will sign and date the new owner section of the book so this is proof of the date of you becoming the new owner.
You are then responsible for the tax from that date and when you go to tax the car you will have to tax it back to the start of that month so there's no shortfall to revenue.

As others have said take a photo of the signed and dated section and I believe you would be very very unlucky if a Garda decided to summons you in these circumstances. It's called common sense on their part.

Also have your driving licence to prove your identity

Sleeper12

colm_mcm wrote:

On a new car, you’re liable for tax from the beginning of the month the car is registered in. You can do a SORD the same as you can on a used car.

I bought a new van 18 months ago. I couldn't tax it for nearly a month. You have to wait for log book to be posted out to you, then the Gardai have to sign the tax form. Throughout all of this it is fine to drive so long as you have insurance.

Cushie Butterfield

If you do get stopped you could also get fined for non display of insurance disc despite having arranged insurance with your provider.

You’re not the first to be in that situation & I’d be very surprised if, in the unlikely event that you were stopped that all’s that would happen is the garda would tell you to produce tax & insurance paperwork within 10 days, once you explain the situation to them.

Carry your drivers licence. Take a photo with your phone of the completed vehicle reg cert showing the change of ownership details, make sure you see the envelope being posted, have a receipt for the transaction, & perhaps an email from your insurance company confirming you’re insured to drive it.

That’s the only real alternative to previous advice, considering there is no mechanism in place to do what you & countless others want to do. The vast majority of Gardaí are quite reasonable when they see someone is genuine.

colm_mcm

:pac:

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I bought a new van 18 months ago. I couldn't tax it for nearly a month. You have to wait for log book to be posted out to you, then the Gardai have to sign the tax form. Throughout all of this it is fine to drive so long as you have insurance.

I would guess the van you bought was a pre-reg or demo, as you can tax a new commercial straight away and only get the log book once it’s taxed.

zoe 3619

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I bought a new van 18 months ago. I couldn't tax it for nearly a month. You have to wait for log book to be posted out to you, then the Gardai have to sign the tax form. Throughout all of this it is fine to drive so long as you have insurance.

I don't think gardai sign tax forms anymore?

BarryD2

Your chances of being stopped are pretty slim, multiply that by the chance you meet an unreasonable Garda on an off day and the odds of a fine/ points are even slimmer. I encounter Garda checks maybe once or twice a year, drive a diesel car for 15 years and never been dipped.

Sleeper12

colm_mcm wrote:

I would guess the van you bought was a pre-reg or demo, as you can tax a new commercial straight away and only get the log book once it’s taxed.

Nope. Brand new 2117 van & I took delivery of it 12th of January. You can't tax a new commercial straight away. Nor can it be done online. You need to sign a declaration stating that it's only for the commercial use & the Gardai. None of this can be done till you get the log book & this takes a few weeks when you buy in January as it's the busiest month of the year for new vehicles

velo.2010

Interesting thread.

Looking at a car from a trader myself. The tax was up on the 30th June. If I pick it up during the week is the tax backdated to the 1st July or will I owe a month (July) if the tax is only backdated to the 1st of August.

I'll guess that he hasn't declared it off the road.

Sleeper12

zoe 3619 wrote:

I don't think gardai sign tax forms anymore?

For a commercial first tax they do. I have to sign that it's for commercial use only and they have to sign as witness

tabby aspreme

velo.2010 wrote: »

Interesting thread.

Looking at a car from a trader myself. The tax was up on the 30th June. If I pick it up during the week is the tax backdated to the 1st July or will I owe a month (July) if the tax is only backdated to the 1st of August.

I'll guess that he hasn't declared it off the road.

If you buy in August you tax it from the 1st of August

colm_mcm

velo.2010 wrote: »

Interesting thread.

Looking at a car from a trader myself. The tax was up on the 30th June. If I pick it up during the week is the tax backdated to the 1st July or will I owe a month (July) if the tax is only backdated to the 1st of August.

I'll guess that he hasn't declared it off the road.

You’ll only owe tax from August 1st.

OfTheMarsWongs

I bought a car last year, drove out to the motor tax office in said car, handed them the log book and paid the tax. Think it was out of tax about a few weeks. I don’t recall paying back tax.

If you’re buying in Limerick City, the motor tax office is in the grounds of The Crescent Shopping centre. Easy to get to & loads of parking.

https://www.limerick.ie/council/services/roads-and-travel/motor-tax

Megatooth

OfTheMarsWongs wrote: »

I bought a car last year, drove out to the motor tax office in said car, handed them the log book and paid the tax. Think it was out of tax about a few weeks. I don’t recall paying back tax.

If the you’re buying in Limerick City, the motor tax office is in the grounds of The Crescent Shopping centre. Easy to get to & loads of parking.

https://www.limerick.ie/council/services/roads-and-travel/motor-tax

Interesting. That'd be great. So did they recognise you as the owner because you had filled the Log book out even though the Registration of change of ownership hadn't gone through in Shannon?

OfTheMarsWongs

Megatooth wrote: »

Interesting. That'd be great. So did they recognise you as the owner because you had filled the Log book out even though the Registration of change of ownership hadn't gone through in Shannon?

Yes, they accepted me as the owner as I’d signed the log book. Got the disc off them there and then. They’ve a debit/credit card reader at the window.

They posted the book internal mail or whatever out to Shannon.

Megatooth

OfTheMarsWongs wrote: »

Yes, they accepted me as the owner as I’d signed the log book. Got the disc off them there and then. They’ve a debit/credit card reader at the window.

They posted the book internal mail or whatever out to Shannon.

Nice one. I'll give it a shot.
Funnily enough I just heard that there was a checkpoint this evening on my potential route home haha.

Thank you everyone for the advice, I will try the tax office and worst comes to worst I'll just chance it which as much evidence as I can.

dooroy

I've done that in Galway once or twice - brought in the reg book (with all details filled in etc) rather than send it to Shannon ; I was given a tax disc and they then send the book to Shannon and it comes back to you.
You may be asked for insurance details.

OfTheMarsWongs

Megatooth wrote: »

Nice one. I'll give it a shot.
Funnily enough I just heard that there was a checkpoint this evening on my potential route home haha.

Thank you everyone for the advice, I will try the tax office and worst comes to worst I'll just chance it which as much evidence as I can.

Just to add, you’ll need your insurance policy number for the form. Similar to how you have to enter it on the website when renewing online.

uck51js9zml2yt

bazz26 wrote: »

Can you go into the motor tax office with the seller, do the transfer of ownership and tax the car while your there?

Get the owner to tax it while still In his name in the mto, then change ownership.

uck51js9zml2yt

OfTheMarsWongs wrote: »

Just to add, you’ll need your insurance policy number for the form. Similar to how you have to enter it on the website when renewing online.

That's not verified or verifiable.

grogi

Vivaan Tiny Conga wrote: »

Get the owner to tax it while still In his name in the mto, then change ownership.

Not going to happen, as the previous owner is liable for all of the arrears.

aaakev

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Nope. Brand new 2117 van & I took delivery of it 12th of January. You can't tax a new commercial straight away. Nor can it be done online. You need to sign a declaration stating that it's only for the commercial use & the Gardai. None of this can be done till you get the log book & this takes a few weeks when you buy in January as it's the busiest month of the year for new vehicles

Well this is just wrong information. You can tax a van the day after its registered with the rf100 and goods only declaration in the tax office. The log book for new vehicles comes after the first tax is paid. You cant get a log book without first taxing a new vehicle so you are mistaken.

6541

Just drive on.

jcd5971

Megatooth wrote:

Thank you for the suggestion. Im glad someone has given an alternatige. I looked in to it and it seems awful expensive though. Do normal people usually do this? It seems like everywhere I look people say it's illegal to drive with no tax and they don't give an alternative apart from chancing it.

I always drive it home every time I've got a car, got my last one in December and got stopped on the way home, showed guard pic of logbook my proof of insurance my licence and he seemed happy enough, Did ask where I was from and to show the tax in my local station within 2 weeks and that he'd follow it up if I did not.
I did as he asked and all good.