The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) must be notified immediately whenever you sell a vehicle.  They must be notified of the exact date that the sale and transfer were completed by using the car registration certificate or document (V5C Registration Certificate).  Both the purchaser and you need to follow all procedures accurately and correctly because you will be the one who is still liable for the vehicle until the DVLA has updated their records about the vehicle.

The DVLA needs to be notified immediately and the appropriate section on the V5C needs to be filled out accurately and correctly.  Depending on the type of car registration certificate or document that you are holding, this will mandate which section of the form  is filled out.  Make sure that you keep a separate document with the purchaser’s name, address, and any other pertinent personal information that may apply.

In order to determine the sections of the car registration certificate or document which will need to be filled out when selling your vehicle, you will need to determine which one of these DVLA registrations are in your possession at the time of the sale.  There are normally three different forms so you need to determine which one you have.  They are:

- 2-part V5 registration document
- 3-part V5 registration document
- V5C Registration Certificate

More information is available at the DVLA website regarding the procedures you need to follow.  However, we will be covering all three in ensuing articles.