Your insurance policy is just one of the types of documents you should keep safe.
Your insurance policy is just one of the types of documents you should keep safe.
Now is as good a time as any to ensure all your vehicle paperwork is in order and up to date. You don’t want to be at a point when you are buying or selling a car to find out an essential document that might affect the value of the car is missing.
The majority of these documents should be kept in a secure place and not in your car, as you may need them if your car is stolen and they’d be no good in the glove box with the car. If you are stopped and need the information the majority of it is now available on online databases.
Issued by the DVLA it is your car’s registration document, it’s important to keep your V5C in a safe place. This proves that you are the owner of the vehicle. You will need it if you are selling your car to confirm mileage and current and previous ownership. You will also need it if your vehicle is stolen. If you discover your V5C is missing you can contact the DVLA and request a replacement.
Since the changes to the way you tax your car in October 2014, you no longer need to display a tax disc on your vehicle. The only document required for tax renewal will be your reminder (V11 or V85/1) sent by the DVLA. You will need this document to renew your tax, by phone or at the Post Office.
When you take out an insurance policy your insurer will send you your policy documents. In the first instance you will need to check your documents to make sure you have the policy you expected. Thanks to the Motor Vehicles (Electric Communication of Certificates of Insurance) 2010 order you no longer need to carry your documents in your car but you will need to keep your documents safe.
Vehicles three years and older need an MOT certificate that is issued following a test. The MOT certificate is confirmation that your vehicle is safe to drive. The requirements for passing include road safety and environmental standards. Although your MOT results are now saved on a central database you will still receive an A4 certificate with the results of your MOT test that may need to be inspected if the police for any reason stop you, so keep it safe. You can see here what happens when your car fails an MOT.
A lack of service history can affect the price you could receive for your car should you sell it at a future date. Another important reason to maintain a service history for your car is if it is covered by a warranty. The majority of warranties will specify that the car must be serviced according to the manufacturer’s guidelines, at a manufacturer service centre. Without a documented manufacturer service history the warranty may be void.
If your car is purchased on finance, whether that is PCP, PCH or HP, it would be a good idea to keep all of the paperwork for your car finance plan at least until the end of the finance period.
