Help on registering a US car during Covid

[ollieoscarsid]

Hello all, I'm about to start the process of registering my US 1963 Coupe, something I really should have started ages ago, but there always seemed to be something more interesting to do..

I've read some pretty depressing articles regarding the state of the DVLA during Covid, and in particular the Historic Vehicle dept and thought it would be a good idea to see if anyone has been through it recently and can offer any advice? My main concern is waiting months (which seems the case) only to have everything returned as incomplete.

The car is a very original matching numbers car with heritage cert, original data plates/picture frame, a little history and (what I think) is the 'Pink slip' releasing title signed by the last owner. It was imported by Eagle Racing in 2005 and have all the import docs.

Any help or pointers towards existing threads appreciated, thanks, Chris

[Fuel.inj]

Other than dealing with the DVLA direct online during this pandemic, the agency is a nightmare to deal with if it incurs a paper trail of any sort which is currently running at 3-4 months and that’s assuming all you documents are in order. The light at the end of the tunnel for you is that the Chancellor is telling staff to get back to the office so that may speed up the process in the future. Good luck.

[xk.app.soc.]

Hi Chris.
I went through this procedure last year. I had my application returned 3 times. The main problem was, my car is a California car. When a Jaguar E Type was registered in California,, They put a "J" and "71". J =Jaguar, 71= year of registration, in front of my VIN number, therefore it didn't match the VIN number on the heritage certificate, also I didn't send the original title as they don't return them.
I was advised to contact Keith Vincent at the Jaguar Enthusiast Club. Keith sent me a letter confirming all the numbers matched on JEC headed paper, I sent this letter to DVLA along with another application, everything went through fine, I received an age related reg number and V5 6 weeks later.
If you want Keith's Email Address message me.

Cheers Phil.

[mgcjag]

Keith Vincent details are already her on the forum re registration help. .... keith.vincent@uwclub.net Steve

[Philk]

From the various posts on the forum plus colleagues I've spoken to on this, the experience is variable to say the least. One person I know submitted very little a couple of months ago and the V5 application sailed through and another had a to/fro dialogue that lasted some months. For my part, DVLA insisted on having the car inspected (they outsource the work to a company called SGS) so as to gain reassurance around the car's originality. The DVLA pay for that. Once that had been done (there were no issues), the V5 was issued quickly.

Very much the luck of the draw I'm afraid to say.

[ollieoscarsid]

Thanks for all the help everyone, think I’ve decided to send certified copies of all the documents and have the car verified first by one of the clubs. Kicking myself a little for not sorting this sooner, but I’m probably 6 months off getting her finished, so fingers crossed

[Philk]

Just to say that the DVLA will likely insist on receiving the original U.S. Title for the car and not a certified copy. They retain this so be sure to ensure you keep a copy on your side. Perhaps try the certified copy route first but don't be surprised if they reject that.

[265bhp]

I tried the ‘version of a copy’ of the DVLA and it was promptly returned, as soon as I sent the original title document I received my new V5 was in a matter of weeks

I still have the copy so that’s good enough for my history file

Jonathan