Will be getting a car back on the road soon it has been SORN for a couple of years,it seems i can insure it and book it in for MOT but can't seem to tax it without the MOT ?

I had this last year when I put my Series 3 back on the road, I think you will find that you do not have to un-SORN the car, it happens automatically when you re-Tax the vehicle. Just to be sure ask the MOT tester or the Post Office.

Jim

Insure it, pre book the mot test, when you have the mot certificate just tax it. Job done. Make sure you pre book the mot test as you can only legally drive it from home to the test station and back if it is pre booked. If you get stopped on the way there, the police WILL phone the test station to confirm it.

That's excellent thank you my friend was telling me i couldn't drive it to test centre without tax thanks for the replies guys.

The question takes me back to 1975!
I was in the same position, I insured the car, booked an MOT for the last day of the month, drove to the MOT station. Got stopped by police en route who spotted the out of date tax disc and gave chase. I explained what I was doing, details were taken.
I carried on got MOT drove home then made THE mistake, I taxed the car the next day from the first of the new month.

Result was a prosecution which I tried to defend as I was genuinely puzzled by what I had done wrong, as indeed were the magistrates for a while! It was eventually explained I should have taxed the car from the first day of the month in which I had driven it to the MOT station - obvious I suppose.

So the answer is insure it, book MOT, get MOT, tax it from the start of the month in which you get the MOT. The SORN ends as soon as you re-tax.

As it's going to be done beginning of next month that is excellent info thank you.

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Last edited by PeakWayfarer on 14th Oct 2017 8:42 pm. Edited 1 time in total

That certainly wasn't my experience although it is possible that more recent legislation has changed things, I guess it may have done as 1975 is a long time ago now but things don't usually change in a way that costs us less and loses revenue for the Government!

I was clearly told (albeit in 1975!) that if you drive it on the road, you are liable for tax for the month in which you do it. My experience was that you won't be prosecuted for driving it to or from the test station but you can be /will be done for tax avoidance if you don't pay tax for the whole of the month in which you do it.

Learning that lesson cost me a fine and I had to pay the extra months tax even though I had driven it on the last day of the month and taxed from the first of the following month. It seems pretty self evident that if the car has a SORN it ain't supposed to be on the road (unless en-route to getting MOT or other statutory test prior to re-taxing and ending the SORN presumably).

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Last edited by PeakWayfarer on 14th Oct 2017 8:43 pm. Edited 1 time in total

As you say things may well have changed 40 years is a long time even though I remember the event very well indeed!

This needs the knowledge of Dr Who brought to bear! Suppose he's off on his travels to that other planet - America!