Find it hard to believe

That owners (not only on this forum) admit they have been defrauding  the government over car tax, by running a bigger engine than declared in the log book, and unless declared to the insurance company have not been legally insured.

I don't think it's a case of defrauding the government to be honest. When I spoke to the DVLA about changing my GTI engine to a 2.0 16v they said it doesn't necessarily have to be changed as its in the same engine group (whatever that means?) and my insurance didn't put the price up at all.

I guess some people don't see the point to go though all of the hassle of informing all the relevant organisations just for the sake of it!

What about colour?  My car has been green for 5 years and nothing said at MOT or service

Any change to the vehicle like Engine or colour DVLA have to be informed.

As for the insurance companies if you fail to inform any changes it could void your insurance, yes colour change of wheels and the insurance could say OK that's a misunderstanding however an engine increase from a 1L to a 1.8L or smaller/bigger then find yourself in court for no insurance and maybe the company could push for fraud.

There's a difference between declaring and not.
Anything you believe negates the rules of either the DVLA or from an insurance get it in writting.
Quite simply put if make changes to the car that need declaring it's wise too. Rather than run the risk of paying for insurance that's null and void and facing any potential penalties for that.

Just my 2P worth..

I deal every day with insurance companies and believe me some are red hot on anything not matching the policy and others will say they need to contact us or if they pay this amount we'll cover.

It could be something to do with how difficult it is to do! 

You need an independent engineers report from a vat registered company for starters.  

Im in the middle of trying to change mine now from a 1300 to a 1.8t.  The v5c is now back with the DVLA for the THIRD time since january as they seem unable to fill out their own forms correctly.  First they changed the engine number to a made up one and didnt change the capacity,  second even with a seperate covering note they didnt change the capacity, im hoping they will change it this time or i may consider giving it up😳  

Hoping not to get a letter asking for an independent check at a vosa or i will probably scrap the car for what its going to cost.

All i want to do is pay the right tax and be legal!!! 

As a side note, my insurance company has insured with all mods declared but would say it could be a loophole for them not to pay out if my car were not to be correctly registered.  That and the worry of being pulled and having my car impounded.  Desperate to drive it now but darent until i can pay the right tax😢

unfortunately a lot of Insurance companies require simple changes e.g. a stereo upgrade! which may not sound a lot at all, but they look at the risk of the car being broken into…
even alloy changes, stupid spoilers (personal hate), body kit, grill vents etc… with a modded engine (sometimes an Air Filter!) anything not standard from registration it needs to be advised to Insurance Co's (engine mods to DVLA) (bigger engine/ higher emissions CO2 ((not all cases))  - get it tested - doesn't cost much down your local MOT station, etc = higher tax/band) & your Insurance Co. - if your car is involved in an accident or theft ( i hope neither the case) & an assessor finds something that has not been declared then the policy will become null & void & basically you get shafted!!! you lose the lot!! it's worth a simple phone call… may think it's a pain in the deriere but worth the time & effort so you know where you stand. 

My stereo upgrade more than doubled the cost of my annual insurance premium. It also put up my excess to something like £1000 which I challenged as someone uninsured running into me forcing me to claim would have no bearing on whether or not I have a stereo in the car.. but they wouldn't have it.. I personally would declare absolutely everything as it is an insurance companies job not to pay you out. If they can find a way to have you over for their own financial gain then they will. I once had a Renault 5 gt turbo raider which someone drove into the side of me. A guy from his insurance company came to the Renault dealership while I was there and checked my tyre pressures, tread depth, tax, air filter, etc etc etc looking for anything about my car to imply it wasn't road legal so they didn't have to pay out. Luckily I am on the ball with stuff like that and so they didn't have a leg to stand on. But I know first hand the lengths they will go to not to pay out. So be warned. Declare everything!!!

When I was 18 my mk2 decided it wanted to be something other than a car so set itself on fire whilst I was driving (fuel leak from carb onto exhaust mani). When the insurance blokey came to inspect what was left of the car they tried to get out of paying out because it had a cone filter and a stupid bean can exhaust that I hadn't had chance to get rid of. Ended up having to get an engineers report to say that the loss of back pressure from the stupid exhaust would make the car slower and the filter would make no real difference on a 1.6 - thankfully they paid out in the end.

Strangely though, my mate crashed his 306 into an armco (all by his own doing, lift off oversteer round a bend as he entered the slip road, what a muppet) - it was lowered, stupid exhaust, remapped, stereo, sub, etc etc (none of which was declared) and his insurance didn't bat an eyelid, paid out more than he paid for the car within a matter of days.

Now that I'm older and wiser I wouldn't risk not being properly insured, I guess it's just a gamble people take because it saves a few pennies, but I do think that stereos that are properly secured or wheels with locking wheel nuts shouldn't have to be declared - what about upgraded wheels from the factory? Surely if you ordered a new car and paid extra for nicer wheels you would still have to declare it as a 'mod' to your insurers, but how many people honestly do that??

jusdubbin said

What about upgraded wheels from the factory? Surely if you ordered a new car and paid extra for nicer wheels you would still have to declare it as a 'mod' to your insurers, but how many people honestly do that??

I asked my insurance company about up grades and was informed they need to be declare like Satnav, keyless entry and wheel upgrades. The reason behind this if the car a write off or stolen within the first 12 months its replace with like for like and not one off the shelf standard production line.

For anyone interested in the slightly lengthy process, i got my v5c through the post today finally fully correct, not bad considering i sent the first in early january!

Although ive not been able to drive it at all, still not a great excuse for not getting it done though…..

technically, my second car should have V rated tyres fitted (150mph, despite the fact that the car can't reach such a speed, legally or otherwise) and most 'standard' insurers would simply read from their guides which would state something like 'tyres fitted should meet the vehicle manufacturers requirements'…in the eyes of a standard insurer therefore, in the unfortunate event of having to make a claim, even 'wrong' tyres could have proved problematic - because we all know how keen insurers are to pay out of course….

the 205/70/15 V rated tyres for my car cost around £200 per corner plus the VAT! I needed four and was consequently looking at a bill for well over £1,000!

Thankfully, I was able to clarify with my classic insurer that the H rated (still 130mph) tyres I was considering were quite legal. All four (Yokohamas) fitted for £320 - still a hefty bill but the ones I replaced had been fitted for 10 years so not so bad really…

Had I not been with an appropriate insurer, though the H rated tyres were and are legal, in the event of a claim, I would have had unnecessary hassle to contend with. I hope of course not to need to claim…

Insurance is just a legal scam anyway.

I put bigger braked on my car which put my policy up. Dispite having huge stopping power over the OEM items. 

But apparently that doesn't matter as it makes it more desirable and suggests I am going speed hence needing bigger brakes. 

I got hit by a bus and that also put my policy up even though it wasn't my fault.

Its just a scam. Can't legally drive without it and they aim not to pay out. If it was an optional service it would be deemed so poor no one would buy it. I know I wouldn't. For how much I've paid over the years for garbage insurance I'd have enough to put my son through uni. 

heartagram said

Insurance is just a legal scam anyway.

I put bigger braked on my car which put my policy up. Dispite having huge stopping power over the OEM items. 

But apparently that doesn't matter as it makes it more desirable and suggests I am going speed hence needing bigger brakes. 

I got hit by a bus and that also put my policy up even though it wasn't my fault.

Its just a scam. Can't legally drive without it and they aim not to pay out. If it was an optional service it would be deemed so poor no one would buy it. I know I wouldn't. For how much I've paid over the years for garbage insurance I'd have enough to put my son through uni. 

I have to agree about the optional service point, i could have brought 2 of my car in the 4 years of owning it paying out insurance, first year alone was almost as much as the car was worth (£1700!)