Drivers who are looking to tax their vehicle online this weekend won't be able to do so as the DVLA service will be temporarily unavailable.
The driving authority has said that certain online services will be unavailable from Friday evening until Saturday afternoon as its website undergoes maintenance updates. The government body, which deals with tax and licensing, has said paper applications won't be affected.
An announcement on its website said changes are being made due to the Spring Budget. Car tax costs are to increase from tomorrow, as part of the government announcement earlier in March.
A statement published on Thursday read: "Some of our online vehicle services will be unavailable on Friday 31 March and Saturday 1 April as we are making changes due to announcements in the recent Budget."
It comes as drivers are being warned that car tax prices are set to increase by 10.1 per cent on April 1, in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI) that measures inflation.
This means drivers will have to pay more to keep their cars on the road. While rates can vary, petrol and diesel drivers' standard rate of car tax will increase from £165 to £180.
Read below to find out what services will be unavailable and when they will return.
Car tax
The following services will be unavailable between 11.30pm on Friday March 31 and 2.30am on Saturday April 1:
- Tax your vehicle (online service and automated tax payment phone line – 0300 123 4321)
- Register your vehicle as off the road (SORN) (online service and automated phone line – 0300 123 4321)
Vehicle tax services at the Post Office will be unavailable on:
- Friday March 31 between 6pm and 8.40pm
- Friday March 31 between 11.30pm and 2.30am on Saturday 1 April
Fines
The following service will be unavailable between 6pm on Friday March 31 and 2am on Saturday April 1:
- Pay a DVLA fine
Number plates
The following services will be unavailable between 6pm on Friday March 31 and 7am on Saturday April 1:
- Tell DVLA you’ve sold, transferred or bought a vehicle
- Private (personalised) number plates: Assign a private number to a vehicle
- Private (personalised) number plates: Take a private number off a vehicle
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