Who's liable for unpaid Road Tax?

[NikJak]

I've just bought a car and the previous owner has not bothered to tax it or get a sorn for the last year or so (it has been off the road). I was all ready to send off the papers and get it taxed tomorrow having just forked out �80 for the MOT but I've just had a scary conv in the pub! A mate has just notched up a CCJ without even knowing because a car he bought had missed a years tax prior to his ownership and because the correspondence had not been answered over the last yr or so as soon as he sent off his new keepers slip the debt/fine wass attributed to him. Is this right? If so, the car can go straight back. Has anyone heard of this sort of thing before or am I worrying unnecessarily?
Cheers for any guidance.
Nik

[kempie]

The whole point of a car being registered to a person i.e. the Registered Keeper, is so the DVLA know who is liable for ensuring the vehicle remains road legal.

By sending off the New Keeper slip the liability from that date onward is transferred to the person named on the slip. If prior to the date of transfer the VED had not been renewed and no SORN declaration made then any fines issued for that offence go to whoever was the Registered Keeper at the time the tax expired.