fined £640 for un-taxed car

[flo1]

i have a really big problem and i need help please!

yesterday i recieved a threatening letter from a court saying that i owed £640 and i need to pay within 10 days or i will have my car clamped or i will be arrested!? or the fine will go up by 50%

i had no idea what the fine was for so i called the court, and they said it was for having a un-taxed car.
apparently my car was photographed by the dvla with a old tax disc.... but this was a year ago!

i have never recieved any fines from the dvla and this is the first letter i have had.

im really worried and dont know what to do.....
apparently i can appeal but i have no evidance to say that i didnt recieve the fine.... and now because its a year on... its gone up from £80 to £640

what can i do?!

[dothawkes31]

Pay it.

[welshlibranr]

you don't say for how long you car was untaxed, they normally only charge you for the back tax, and a fine!!........................

[dothawkes31]

They will have added on the bailiffs fees for ignoring the fine and not paying it though, so that;'s why its gone up,

[flo1]

i never recieved the fine in the first place tho so i have never had the chance to pay it. my car would have only been untaxed for about 2 weeks, and in that time i didnt drive it, although i cant prove that. is there anything i can do to get the fine down at all?

[jno]

better check that the photo doesn't show it being driven, for a start.

[dizmouk2009]

I'd run it to court, come up with an air tight letter and hand it to the magistrates who will then recess. Just tell them how you are unable to pay such a fine and that you have been stupid forgetting to tax or sorn your vehicle but was never informed of it. The DVLA are vindictive bástárds.

[flo1]

no it doesnt, it showes my car parked down a road near my house

[dizmouk2009]

jno: 1. they won't show her/him the photographic evidence. 2. it being driven won't change a thing at all.

[ELVIS68]

If you didn`t declare the car offroad then you still have to pay whether you drove it or not

[dizmouk2009]

This is going to sound a bit harsh but surely anyone who owns a vehicle with road tax knows the 'law'

[dizmouk2009]

This isn't about the vehicle being offroad, it's about the DVLA not informing the recipient of charges about to be made.

[jno]

it might, dizmo, if he insisted he wasn't driving it and the evidence made him out to be a liar - but as he's said it was just parked, that at least is something.

[flo1]

it was a genuine mistake, i always tax my car, i just didnt realise.... i should have checked but just forgot! i would have been ok paying a reasonable fine... but £640 is so much money... i just cant afford it.

[dizmouk2009]

jno: it still makes no difference. He could of held a better case if he had been pictured driving it, with there being no reminder he could of contested things. You can't walk into court and say "I wasn't driving it though your worships", it would look less suspisious if you had 'forgot' your tax.

[dizmouk2009]

flo sounds female, I apologise if I'm calling you male.

[flo1]

the picture of my car were of it parked. but thats not what im worried about. the fact is that the dvla didnt sent me any fines at all, so i have had no chance to pay. and now because of that they want me to pay 640. i want to know if there is anything i can do about the fact that they have not contacted me at all... and now i get a letter from a court... thats the 1st thing i know about it all.

[dizmouk2009]

Did you get any vehicle tax/sorn reminder?

[flo1]

nope nothing at all to remind me, thats why i forgot

[dizmouk2009]

Do you feel as if you could represent yourself in court?

[factor-fiction]

It's odd that you have only just been notified and, whilst you can't dispute you failed to tax the car, you should challenge any additional fees already incurred for late payment etc..
However I'm a bit puzzled:
(a) Did you know at the time and that's why you didn't drive it?
(b) Can a car be untaxed for 2 weeks? Isn't it done in full months?
(c) when you did get round to taxing it you must have realised it had been on theroad without tax. Was there an option to backdate the tax?