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Motor Vehicles: Registration

Volume 459: debated on Thursday 26 April 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many prosecutions were brought against the keepers of foreign registered vehicles for failing to re-register their vehicle details with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency after six months in each of the last five years. (132948)

There is no current legislation available to the Agency, which allows for the prosecution of keepers of foreign vehicles who have failed to register their vehicles within the required timescales.

However, if the Agency receives a report recording the sighting of an unlicensed vehicle on the road, the Agency is able to prosecute under the legislation provided by Section 29 VERA. There are practical difficulties with this and unless a name and address of the keeper of the foreign vehicle is provided the Agency is unable to pursue these cases. The Agency is able to utilise other enforcement action such as the wheel clamping and impounding of a vehicle. Vehicle keepers are required to provide evidence of registration in the UK and licensing before the release of the vehicle. The number of prosecutions of foreign vehicles under this legislation in each of the last five years is not collated.