Print

[KAS2A]

I am looking at a Series IIA  Rover 10 (according to an internal plate) military which is for sale by auction.   It does not have a V5, with the owner's representative stating that this has been applied for and will be available 'in a week or two' - after the auction end date.  It apparently has been in the Republic of Ireland all its civilian life since sold by the military.  It is a tidy thing, having had work done on it, with reasonable but patched chassis, but I'm wondering what might be the 'gotchas' of a vehicle like this not apparently ever having been registered in the UK.  Is it possible to check if it has been road registered in the ROI?

[w3526602]

Hi KA S,

I'm not aware of any problems (but I might be 40 odd years out of date)

Irish registrations used to include an "I" or a "Z", but "Z" was pretty rare However, some years ago there were a lot of coaches (charabancs) in South Wales, with an "I". Presumably this was a ploy to disguise exactly how old the bus was. I have seen very few "Zs".

MN and MAN registrations are/were issued by the Isle of Man (a sovereign state?), and cannot be displayed by a vehicle registered in UK.

I believe J and G ,on their own, as the sole Alfa content on a registration plate, are issued by the islands of Jersey and Guernsey, are somehow registerable on the mainland. (Barbara dealt with the POLICY aspects of Cherished Transfers, and says that Channel Island registrations are not transferable to a UK registered vehicle ... but that was then)  The Channel Islands are neither part of UK, nor the EU.

Way back when we had a place in France, the car park at Dinan Airport was full of grubby cars with Jersey and Guernsey plates.

Historic Note ... William the B****** first invaded one of the Channel Islands, believing it was England. Oops!

602

I.e. the electrics are telling the truth. (bad connection, dodgy voltage reg etc et

[ChrisJC]

OT -  G plates are Gibraltar. J is Jersey. Guernsey plates are just numeric.

I know that because when I went to Gibraltar I couldn't understand why so many cars from Guernsey were there. Then I realised.

Chris.

[Supercal2007]

The OP said it has been in the Republic all its civvy life. That will be a different kettle of fish.
Peter  -can you shed some light on this  ?

[diffwhine]

The records per county in Ireland were sketchy pre computerisation much like the UK. If it has a current Irish registration on the new system, then transfer to UK plates should be relatively simple. If it was never registered as a civilian vehicle following it's military life, or was never updated on the Irish database, that will be more challenging. Like the UK, you would need to try and find out of it was ever on Irish plates and if so which local registration office held the registration and tax information.

I'd be wary... Anybody who puts a vehicle up for auction before having its documents sorted is asking for trouble. It may not be what it appears to be and I would strongly advise a full inspection and advice from our VRO - Peter Holden. Perhaps if the sale were conditional on receipt of a complete V5C and UK plates, that might be more acceptable.

Caveat emptor and all that...

[Wittsend]

I wouldn't consider buying this vehicle - even if it were FREE
Too much potential hassle, walk away - there are plenty of good vehicles out there with the correct paperwork.

It is suspicious that the seller hasn't bothered to sort the paperwork out BEFORE placing the advertisement, perhaps he knows there is a problem.
The vehicle would be worth a lot more IF it has all the paperwork and ready to go!

If you must, then speak to our Vehicle Registrations Officer - Peter Holden on [email protected]

 

[Genem]

No V5, "owners representative" selling it and paperwork applied for, due shortly after the auction ends ?  Mahoosive alarm bells ringing !

Walk away, there will be something with proper documentation along in a minute.

[daugs]

If it's in the UK then come over from Ireland, so is HMRC happy that no duty payable, yes manufactured in UK and if with MOD then in UK not exported then sold, where, in UK, but if in NI then different rules again complicated by the current arrangements.

If you buy at auction then accepting terms and warranties given and the legal terms of those, caveat emptor. Maybe hope doesn't sell and then start negotiations on basis that some of issues addressed as part of the deal.

Years ago I bought a project on ebay. No v5 but ran the risk given statements made. Absolute can of worms which I eventually sorted out but huge hassle and vehicle had to just sit in the garage until resolved.

[KAS2A]

Thank you, all good advice.  It is a friend that is interested, he's hoping that it doesn't sell at auction whereupon he can get it properly inspected and then offer / walk away accordingly.

[Wittsend]

I'm hoping it doesn't sell as it could just be one big headache for the buyer.



 

[w3526602]

Hi,

OT ... maybe 50 to 60 years ago, somebody let it be known that he wanted TR2 log-books, with no questions. Apparently a car transporter carrying a load of unregistered TR, got itself into an RTA .... which (it was said) made the cars it was carrying un-registerable. I assume they had become the property of the insurers.

There was also talk of £5 notes being available at £1 each. Strange, but I don't know anybody who dug deeper. And then a famous train robbery took place. Aaaah!

602