Lost the green slip from the logbook? What a new keeper can do

01

Where does the change of keeper stand?

Start with the seller, not the paperwork. It is the seller's report of the sale that leads the DVLA to put you on its record and post you a V5C; the slip in your hand plays no part in that, so losing it changes nothing about the logbook's journey.

A quick message to the seller settles where things are: did they report the sale online or post the logbook, and on what date? Sellers who report online receive the DVLA's confirmation that they are no longer the keeper, which they can forward to you.

Do not let it drift past 6 weeks: from then on, a V5C that went missing costs £25 to replace. For when and how to chase, see how long a V5C takes.

02

Why you cannot tax a car without the new keeper slip, and the way round it

GOV.UK rules out taxing as a new keeper without the slip, so the only way round it is to become the keeper on paper first, with a V5C made out to you.

If the seller is no help, through a lost logbook or by vanishing, that V5C is yours to apply for:

1. Download and print form V62 (it cannot be completed or sent digitally), or collect a copy from a Post Office.
2. Complete it and post it with the £25 fee, following the payment and address details printed on the form.
3. Hang on to the evidence of the purchase (receipt, advert, messages): the DVLA sometimes inspects a car to confirm its identity, and would contact you to arrange it.
4. Give it around 4 weeks, then chase the DVLA if nothing has come.
5. Once the logbook lands, its 11-digit reference lets you tax the car.

You may read that a V62 can be handed in at a Post Office and the car taxed on the spot. That option is for current keepers replacing their own logbook. A new keeper without a slip waits for the V5C, and the car stays off public roads until then.

03

What can you do with the slip that you cannot do without it?

When the V5C arrives, the slip retires and the logbook's own 11-digit number takes over; its position is shown in V5C reference numbers explained.

04

Can the seller still put things right?

In most cases. The only sellers GOV.UK's online service cannot help are those who have already posted the logbook or never had it; anyone still holding the main part can report the sale online with its 11-digit number, whatever became of the slip.

There is a paper route too: the seller passes you the rest of the logbook, you write your name and address into its new keeper section, and you post it to the DVLA as GOV.UK directs.

Both end the same way, with a V5C posted to you and no V62 needed. Reporting a change of keeper costs nothing; GOV.UK lists no fee for it.

05

What does the law expect of a seller?

The rules sit in regulation 22 of the Road Vehicles (Registration and Licensing) Regulations 2002. Two duties fall on a seller holding the registration document: deliver the part marked for the new keeper to the buyer, and notify the DVLA forthwith, with the buyer's name and address and the date of sale.

Without a logbook, the seller writes to the DVLA instead. The letter has to identify both parties and the car: the seller's name and address, the registration, make and model, the exact date of sale, and the buyer's name and address.

And when no part of the logbook survives, regulation 22 makes the new keeper the applicant, with a £25 fee, which is the V62 route described above. Citizens Advice can help if a seller digs in and will not cooperate; nothing here is legal advice, only general information about the DVLA's process.

06

Selling, and the green slip is missing?

A missing slip does not trap you with the car. Report the sale online using the 11-digit reference from your most recent logbook and then destroy the rest of it, or complete the logbook and send it by post. Either way the DVLA issues the buyer their own V5C, usually within 5 to 7 working days of an online report.

Expect the DVLA to ask who bought the car (full name and address) and on what date; file the confirmation it sends. Reporting the sale also cancels your tax, with a refund for any full months that remain. Each method is set out in telling the DVLA you have sold your car.

07

How to avoid slip problems when you buy

Most slip trouble begins at the handover, and three habits prevent it:

1. Look at the complete logbook and make sure the slip belongs to it. A tip from GOV.UK: the date on the slip should be the same as the latest V5C issue date in its free vehicle enquiry.
2. Have the seller complete the slip in front of you, and agree who reports the sale and when.
3. Store the slip and your receipt together until your logbook comes.

No logbook at all is a different and bigger warning: the DVLA tells buyers not to buy a vehicle that lacks a V5C. The reasons are in buying a car without a V5C.

Once the car is taxed, run its registration through the free look-up at the foot of this page, or our car check home page, to confirm the record has caught up.