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Historical international car transfer - back tax issue!

If she cant prove the car left Italy, I doubt a lawyer will be of much help.
It will probably be cheaper and faster to bribe the corrupt *******, failing that, ask the local Don for a favour on the day of his daughter wedding.
Were you in Naples when there was a big investigation into the BFPO there? Staff, presumably LEs, had been intercepting the HMRC 'Yellow Forms" that allowed Tax-free imports back to the UK to be registered. The investigation also involved the NATO MTO (an RAF Flt Lt) and 'Tony 4 Laner'; those who lived in Naples will know the latter.

Whilst we were waiting for our car to be ready in the UK (for me to drive to Naples) we went to the SAAB dealership in Agnano to look at the same (tax-free) car we were importing. The local salesman cheerfully informed us that we could get the same car from them, with all the BFPO paperwork, at a cheaper price. The corruption was widespread and very well established.
 
ah, well, there's the issue. Presumably the Italian authorities were not advised that car had left Italy, and both HMRC and DVLA were not contacted about the vehicle being permanently in the UK, so road tax wasn't paid in either country, was it?
GM How much do you like your sister?
There are a few iffy ways such as finding a copy of a letter your sister wrote to the Italian DVLA (original lost in Italian post) with a suitable date on it. Claim it was stolen and she forgot to report it, various other schemes come to mind.
 
GM How much do you like your sister?
There are a few iffy ways such as finding a copy of a letter your sister wrote to the Italian DVLA (original lost in Italian post) with a suitable date on it. Claim it was stolen and she forgot to report it, various other schemes come to mind.

She is my favourite sibling, so I am really loathe for this to cause any issues between us!
 
She is my favourite sibling, so I am really loathe for this to cause any issues between us!
Fair one, just send her a letter with a receipt for the sale dated the day you left Italy with it. Then its up to the Italians to chase over here. I suspect they wont, I suspect the system for reporting cars scrapped then wasn't as good as now and even so not having a V5 bottom slip (the only legal UK way of verifying its been scrapped) will mean the Italians will draw a blank. Be Honest with them (not totally honest) just state it was sold/lent/given to you for the journey home and scrapped after arrival in the UK!
 
Fair one, just send her a letter with a receipt for the sale dated the day you left Italy with it. Then its up to the Italians to chase over here. I suspect they wont, I suspect the system for reporting cars scrapped then wasn't as good as now and even so not having a V5 bottom slip (the only legal UK way of verifying its been scrapped) will mean the Italians will draw a blank. Be Honest with them (not totally honest) just state it was sold/lent/given to you for the journey home and scrapped after arrival in the UK!
And have it written in Italian by a Notore.
 
Fair one, just send her a letter with a receipt for the sale dated the day you left Italy with it. Then its up to the Italians to chase over here. I suspect they wont, I suspect the system for reporting cars scrapped then wasn't as good as now and even so not having a V5 bottom slip (the only legal UK way of verifying its been scrapped) will mean the Italians will draw a blank. Be Honest with them (not totally honest) just state it was sold/lent/given to you for the journey home and scrapped after arrival in the UK!

I have told her I'm willing to write or testify to that fact if needed.
I honestly hadn't considered that proving the car had been transferred to me would then make me liable for UK tax! Guess as it was my ex husband that physically took possession, I could set HMRC/DVLA on him. The CSA can't find him, but I bet they will!
 
She doesn't need one, the rules in the 90's on disposals were slack to say the least, a signed notary letter stating they took the car out of the country and its been disposed of should be an end to it!
 
That might backfire in UK, if the Italians follow up.

- The car was unlawfully driven in UK, because UK residents are not normally permitted to drive foreign registered vehicles in UK (unless its a temporary hire or if they are EU-based for work and using a company car, etc).

- The car did not have UK or Italian car tax.

- Presumably the car was used without Mot or Italian equivalent.

- The car cannot have been insured whilst it was in use in UK.

Because of the usual complications trying to do anything administrative in France and because I was returning to the UK -for a long time I had UK insurance and a French MOT
- Which was acceptable to my insurance company - and saved a lot of admin fuckwittery.

Of course I had no Tax - but it was the letter rather than spirit of the law** I was breaking as I was insured and my vehicle road worthy.

So it may have been in the same sort of grey area -


Of course all around me in France now are UK reg cars with no MOT and sometimes no insurance - valid or not.
Brexit could be painful for some



**Of course on getting back to the UK I was no longer road legal - but you can drive a non MOT vehicle to its test - but cannot make other stops
I confirmed with plod that there was no restriction on length of journey as long as it was direct to a booked MOT. So whilst Portsmouth - Bristol was kicking the arse out of it, it was not illegal
 
An arser I know lives in France, his vehicles are UK registered, taxed and MOT'd. He has to bring them back during the year to avoid registering them in france, its just simply easier and legal. I suspect that Les Flics could round up the ilegal UK vehicles if they could be arsed. A pity they dont but I cant see Brexit having much difference.
 
An arser I know lives in France, his vehicles are UK registered, taxed and MOT'd. He has to bring them back during the year to avoid registering them in france, its just simply easier and legal. .

This time for the 1st few years I did the same but its a pain in the arse from the south of France + with it being an old landie was never quite sure when to book the ferry home.
French wife helped negotiate the twatishry that is the prefecture

I suspect that Les Flics could round up the ilegal UK vehicles if they could be arsed. A pity they dont but I cant see Brexit having much difference.

Periodically the Gendarmes do run random VCPs - not so much since the bacalan - ranging from stopping everyone to specifically targeting UK reg cars

Ive also been pulled a few times owing to the right hooker French plates combo** on general principles I suppose.

I can see if Brexit results in France paying more UK motorists being an easy target for some rebalancing of the books


**and on one occasion not pulled because swmbo was I the pax seat, but from plods expression he would have done had he realised soon enough as it was we were right next to him before he twigged that I was RHD.


Edit at the moment theres much wailing and nashing of teeth ( picked up by the mirror of course) that Brexit means 1000s of ex pats must change their driving licence - this is a Brexit Issue - Mays Fault - confusing for old people - another cost - so unfair - been ok for years etc

Im currently being shunned by the expat community for pointing out that this shouldn't affect any of us because we have all done it all ready** as its a legal requirement already - ergo everyone is complaining that Brexit means we will no longer be able to flout the law.


**My applications in the post because im equally guilty of that one
 
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You didn't perchance get a receipt from the scrap dealer?

Yes, I probably did.

Do you still have a receipt for something you sold 18 years ago? ;-)

(Trust me, I've pulled every scrap of paper out trying to find it. I've found payslips dating back to 1992, every posting order I had in the 80s, but nothing relating to this particular car!)
 
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