Vehicle Identity Check

Last updated

The Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) was a regulation concerning car ownership that was in force in the UK between 2003 and 2015.

Contents

The VIC was introduced on 7 April 2003 and was created to prevent the illegal practice of vehicle cloning and to keep track of scrapyard vehicles. [1] The scheme was run jointly by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA). [2]

Details

The VIC applied only to cars and was intended to ensure that the vehicle registration certificate (V5C) was not issued for stolen or cloned vehicles using the identity of a destroyed vehicle. [3] When a car was written off by an insurance company as "Category C" or higher, checking was required before the V5C could be issued. [4]

Vehicles in Category D did not require inspection. The test, carried out by VOSA, determined whether or not a car presented was the same one that was listed on DVLA records. To apply for a check, a VIC1 Form had to be completed and submitted to VOSA. A car bought with no V5C might also require a VIC even if there had been no insurance claim to confirm its identity before a new V5C was issued.

Closure

Up to 2012, an estimated 900,000 vehicles had been tested under the scheme. However, only 38 "ringers" or cloned vehicles had been successfully identified. [5]

The VIC Scheme closed on 26 October 2015. [6] Since then, the conditions for issue of a V5C are that the vehicle has obtained an MoT Test Certificate, is roadworthy and has insurance.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency</span> UK government department

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is the organisation of the British government responsible for maintaining a database of drivers in Great Britain and a database of vehicles for the entire United Kingdom. Its counterpart for drivers in Northern Ireland is the Driver and Vehicle Agency. The agency issues driving licences, organises collection of vehicle excise duty and sells personalised registrations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle insurance</span> Insurance for road vehicles

Vehicle insurance is insurance for cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other road vehicles. Its primary use is to provide financial protection against physical damage or bodily injury resulting from traffic collisions and against liability that could also arise from incidents in a vehicle. Vehicle insurance may additionally offer financial protection against theft of the vehicle, and against damage to the vehicle sustained from events other than traffic collisions, such as keying, weather or natural disasters, and damage sustained by colliding with stationary objects. The specific terms of vehicle insurance vary with legal regulations in each region.

Vehicle Excise Duty is an annual tax levied as an excise duty, and which must be paid for most types of powered vehicles which are to be used or parked on public roads in the United Kingdom. Registered vehicles that are not being used or parked on public roads and which have been taxed since 31 January 1998 must be covered by a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) to avoid VED. In 2016, VED generated approximately £6 billion for the Exchequer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving Standards Agency</span> Executive agency of the UK Department for Transport

The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) was an executive agency of the UK Department for Transport (DfT).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MOT test</span> Mandatory checkup for UK motor vehicles

The MOT test is an annual test of vehicle safety, roadworthiness aspects and exhaust emissions required in the United Kingdom for most vehicles over three years old. In Northern Ireland the equivalent requirement applies after four years. The requirement does not apply to vehicles used only on various small islands with no convenient connection "to a road in any part of Great Britain"; no similar exemption is listed at the beginning of 2014 for Northern Ireland, which has a single inhabited island, Rathlin. The MOT test was first introduced in 1960 as a few basic tests of a vehicle and now covers twenty different parts or systems on or in the vehicle.

The Police National Computer (PNC) is a database used by law enforcement organisations across the United Kingdom and other non-law enforcement agencies. Originally developed in the early 1970s, PNC1 went 'live' in 1974, providing UK police forces with online access to the lost/stolen vehicle database. The vehicle owners application quickly followed, giving the police online access to the names/addresses of every vehicle owner in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle and Operator Services Agency</span>

Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) was an executive agency granted trading fund status in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Transport of the United Kingdom Government.

A vehicle licence is issued by a motor registration authority in a jurisdiction in respect of a particular motor vehicle. A current licence is required for a motor vehicle to be legally permitted to be used or kept on a public road in the jurisdiction. Usually a licence is valid for one year and an annual licence fee is payable before a new one is issued.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motor vehicle registration</span>

Motor vehicle registration is the registration of a motor vehicle with a government authority, either compulsory or otherwise. The purpose of motor vehicle registration is to establish a link between a vehicle and an owner or user of the vehicle. While almost all motor vehicles are uniquely identified by a vehicle identification number, only registered vehicles display a vehicle registration plate and carry a vehicle registration certificate. Motor vehicle registration is different from motor vehicle licensing and roadworthiness certification.

The Vehicle register in the United Kingdom is a database of motor vehicles. It is a legal requirement in the UK for most types of motor vehicle to be registered if they are to be used on the public road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle inspection</span> Testing for compliance with regulations

Vehicle inspection is a procedure mandated by national or subnational governments in many countries, in which a vehicle is inspected to ensure that it conforms to regulations governing safety, emissions, or both. Inspection can be required at various times, e.g., periodically or on the transfer of title to a vehicle. If required periodically, it is often termed periodic motor vehicle inspection; typical intervals are every two years and every year. When a vehicle passes inspection, often a sticker is placed on the vehicle's windshield or registration plate to simplify later controls, but in some countries—such as the Netherlands since 1994—this is no longer necessary. Most US inspection decals/stickers display the month's number and the year.

In the United States, the certificate of title for a vehicle is a legal form, establishing a person or business as the legal owner of a vehicle. Vehicle titles in the U.S. are commonly issued by the Secretary of State in the state the vehicle was purchased by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automatic number-plate recognition in the United Kingdom</span>

Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) is a technology for automatically reading vehicle number plates. The Home Office states ANPR is used by law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom to help detect, deter and disrupt criminality including tackling organised crime groups and terrorists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving licence in the United Kingdom</span> UK official document

In the United Kingdom, a driving licence is the official document which authorises its holder to operate motor vehicles on highways and other public roads. It is administered in England, Scotland and Wales by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and in Northern Ireland by the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA). A driving licence is required in England, Scotland, and Wales for any person driving a vehicle on any highway or other "road", as defined in s.192 Road Traffic Act 1988, irrespective of the ownership of the land over which the road passes. Similar requirements apply in Northern Ireland under the Road Traffic Order 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle registration certificate</span> Official proof of vehicle registration

A vehicle registration certificate is an official document providing proof of registration of a vehicle. It is used primarily by governments as a means of ensuring that all road vehicles are on the national vehicle register, but is also used as a form of law enforcement and to facilitate change of ownership when buying and selling a vehicle.

Vehicle registration plates are the alphanumeric plates used to display the registration mark of a vehicle, and have existed in the United Kingdom since 1904. It is compulsory for motor vehicles used on public roads to display vehicle registration plates, with the exception of vehicles of the reigning monarch used on official business.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driver's license</span> Document allowing one to drive a motorized vehicle

A driver's license, driving licence, or driving permit is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses—on a public road. Such licenses are often plastic and the size of a credit card.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency</span> UK Department for Transport Agency

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is an executive agency of the UK Department for Transport (DfT).

Driving licence in Turkey is a document issued by the relevant government agency, regional or local security force, confirming the holder is qualified to drive motor vehicles. Driving licence exams are regulated by the Ministry of National Education while the licence is issued by the General Directorate of Security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HPI Ltd</span> British vehicle history checking service

HPI is a British vehicle history checking service founded in 1938 and part of UK automotive data business cap hpi.

References

  1. ↑ "New checks to foil 'car ringing' rackets" . independent.co.uk. 28 January 2002. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  2. ↑ "The Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) Scheme" (PDF). www.transportoffice.gov.uk. VOSA. November 2005. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  3. ↑ "Car ringing". theguardian.com. 14 December 2005. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  4. ↑ "Code of Practice for the Disposal of Motor Vehicle Salvage" (PDF). Association of British Insurers. 7 May 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  5. ↑ Sinclair, Julie (20 July 2012). "Cloned car scheme wastes millions". Auto Express. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  6. ↑ "Vehicle approval, alteration and identity check data for Great Britain". www.gov.uk. DVLC. 4 December 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2017.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.