Guide 11
Dealing with a loved one’s car is one of many tasks after a death, and often not the most urgent. This guide sets out what needs doing, in an order that keeps things simple.
In short
If the Tell Us Once service is offered where you register the death, it can tell the DVLA for you. Otherwise, write to the DVLA with your relationship to the person, the date of death and their name, address and date of birth.
The executor, or the person administering the estate, is normally the one who decides what happens to it.
A policy in the name of the person who died may not cover anyone else. Leave the car where it is until collection, or move it onto private land if it is on the street.
Arrange collection, hand over the logbook if you have it, and tell the DVLA the car has been scrapped.
Unless the car is causing a problem, such as being parked on a street where it may become untaxed, it can wait while the more pressing matters are dealt with. Scrapping can be done at any point, and nothing is lost by taking a few weeks.
Many register offices offer Tell Us Once, which passes news of a death to several government departments at once, including the DVLA. If it is not available, you can write to the DVLA. You do not need to send a death certificate.
Telling the DVLA about the death is separate from telling it about the car. If the car is being kept or sold, the DVLA’s bereavement guidance explains how to update the record; if it is being scrapped, the scrapping notification closes it.
The car forms part of the estate, so the person handling the estate should agree before it is disposed of. If that is not you, a short message confirming they are happy for the car to be scrapped avoids any later misunderstanding.
A buyer will want to see your identification and understand your connection to the car. Explaining the situation when you book makes the collection straightforward.
It is common not to be able to find the V5C among someone’s papers. The car can still be scrapped. You tell the DVLA by letter, including the car’s details, the scrapping date and the facility’s name and address, and noting that the keeper has died.
Vehicle tax cannot be transferred, so any refund for full months left is sent by cheque. Contact the insurer to cancel the policy; some refund unused premiums to the estate, depending on the policy terms.
Keep every confirmation, the Certificate of Destruction and the buyer’s payment record together with the estate papers. They show what happened to the car and what it was sold for.
Questions
Short answers to questions this guide often raises.
Only if it is taxed, has a valid MOT and you are insured to drive it. A policy in the name of the person who died will not usually cover you, so collection is often simpler.
Yes. Treat it like any other asset, and record it for the person handling the estate.
Contact the finance company. The agreement forms part of the estate, and the lender will explain what it needs.
Guides
Start with the registration and postcode. A licensed buyer covering your area comes back with an offer, and collection is free.