GOV UK Reviews 1,818

I have a unique issue with TV licence. It is now physically impossible to speak with a human in their office. A robot is unable to deal with the issue since TV licence has erred in their interaction with me. (I have now paid not for one but for two TV licences through their error) I guess they have either fired everyone for incompetence or TV office is now a party club, where no one is ever empowered to pick up the phone. Frustrating most especially since i am 96n years old and have difficulties with some of the modern technologies. signed Dr. Hynman Mindlin M.D.,FACS

Maisie from team 19 we are ever so greatful for your help today, we had negative experiences and today you have been so good thank you from the bottom of our heart

Pathetic, incompetent,useless. Only wanted to update license as expired. Only way to do it was to register at gov uk one first. It asked me security questions which i did not know answers to as they were not relevant to me......so i failed and am unable to update online now! Honestly, a two minute job becomes a frickin trilogy! What genius wasted millions setting up this ridiculous and useless service!

Dog shit, dont even deserve a 1.
What entity in 2025 doesnt just do refunds by the method they were paid. Most people are using online banking and these dinosaurs are still sending cheques... and if you need to ask for card payment instead, buckle up for the worst customer service experience going.

Awful - Waiting for vehicle tax refund as well past 6 weeks. Tried phoning several times but you get message that they are too busy. Same with online chat although a week plus back managed to get to chat with a person who said they would chase up as they could see vehicle no longer in country and took email address so as they could update me or similar but nothing yet. WEBCHAT continually getting that it is too busy, but always after you have filled all the required details - why do we have to enter all the details to find that out - unless there is a system check and they don't want to deal with some people? Don't know if they are under resourced and overworked or what but from someone trying to get their money back it is shockingly awful.

Amazingly fast despatch of V5 for new vehicle and refund for sold one. Thank you

DVLA should do something about this booking system which has become an absolute fraud. No matter how early you try to book a test you will never get a date. Driving instructors book all the test dates and sell them at huge prices to the public. What an unfair system. I have been trying to get a date for months to no avail.

A small part of my truth about DVLA, for about two years my car has been parked in a private parking lot in front of my house which has not been used since 19/05/2023 since I bought another car. The engine in the car burned out and I can't drive it, I have sent evidence of the car in pictures several times where it has been parked for all that time. I am sure that DVLA will open the envelope with the evidence and throw everything together in the bin and send me back to pay a fine of £50 - £100 because of my car and my neighbor across the road just today while I am writing this review has 6 cars of which only one has all properly paid insurance, tax and has an MOT, and I sent that evidence to DVLA but they are not interested in that at all because they are asking me for the third time why I am not obliged to pay. If anyone says that the law in the UK is the same for everyone, that is a very big lie. While he sits somewhere in an office and persistently insists that it is the law for some people to have to pay even if they don't have to, and they are not even interested in the proof I sent them about my car, and the proof that should interest many more people like my neighbor who drives many cars without insurance, tax, etc., that problem is the same as many in the UK like my neighbor who drive five to six cars on UK roads without insurance, tax, or MOT. Kind regards

Sent my V5C to the DVLA for a name change along with the Deedpoll. 4 weeks go by and I receive my Deedpoll back with an attached “with complements DVLA” card. 3 weeks go by and no V5C! Make a call and after half an hour of waiting for an answer I finally speak to somebody. Apparently no record of them ever receiving my V5C even though I have a recorded delivery signature. Their answer, sorry you’ll have to complete a V62 and send a check for £25! YOU LOST IT NOT ME! No way to get out of it unfortunately but I highly suspect this is the usual attack on classic vehicle owners by the DVLA as its tax free. Paying tax on wages, insurance and fuel then finally council tax to travel on unfit roads just isn’t enough for the establishment! Like all other publicly funded services this place needs some serious reform!

Absolutely awful service. Waited 5 months since my renewal application and still no response from the Medical Team. Took 6 weeks apparently for my medical review to even be sent to the Team by Customer Service who have no information and decline to give any update. Sadly, this is not a one-off but becoming an annual experience every time I have to renew my one-year licence.

The customer service is shockingly rude. My daughter, a non UK citizen has been aske to sign the back of her picture in the presence of someone who could verify her identity. This is NOT asked to a UK citizen. The application has started 4 weeks ago and we have no information as the website shows "awaiting for the form to be returned"; the form has been returned over two weeks ago. When we called to enquiry the person who supported us ( not) was incredibly rude and just told us that what is on the site is what they view.
What he failed to explain is that it appears that the waiting time for those without a UK passport can be of over 4 weeks. Those born in the UK may only wait 3/4 days.

As the sole carer for my elderly parent and young child—whose nursery is three miles from my home—a driving licence is absolutely essential to my livelihood. After serving my three-month disqualification, I have now been waiting an additional three months for my licence to be reissued, despite the magistrates reducing my original 24-month ban due to insufficient evidence. The court ruled in my favor, recognizing procedural discrepancies that rendered a conviction unrealistic. Yet, the DVLA has arbitrarily deemed me a high-risk offender, directly contradicting the judicial decision.
ruled in my favour This procedural deviation is not only concerning but also suggests a failure to follow the legal framework mandated under Section 6 of the road traffic act, which governs the handling of such matters.The consequences have been devastating—I lost my father last week and couldn’t even be with him in his final moments. Without my licence, regular hospital visits became nearly impossible, leaving me unable to support him when he needed me most.

I feel utterly let down by a system that should uphold justice but instead allows government agencies to override court rulings without accountability. I was once willing to give my life to defend this country, even attempting to join the Army. Yet, the DVLA’s complete disregard for both the judiciary and basic moral principles has left me in shock.

If those responsible were held to the same standards as the rest of us, they would unequivocally be charged with misconduct in public office.

My husband had a stroke a year ago affecting his eyesight.He has not driven since. He has now passed the eye test
I fear his treatment from DVLA is enough to bring on another stroke
He is well, no reason why his license cannot be returned Clearly they don’t care .He wrote on 30th July enclosing a report no reply ,Wrote again on the 30 th August , filled in a form on the 27 th September .
He has wasted endless time on the phone getting agitated .We are now waiting for another Dr from DVLA to review his application
At the end of every application is a person! Sadly DVLA are not interested in the possible consequences of their lack of action!!

Before they privatise anything else they should privatise themselves as I have yet to come across a department who deserves minimum wage. Incapable, incompetent, untrustworthy,.

I SORNed off my motor home successfully before the end of October 2024 which was acknowledged and confirmed by DVLA. See details below.
Then, I received another DO NOT REPLY email from DVLA saying my Direct Debit was not paid by the Bank due to insufficient funds!!
As from my previous with DVLA when they tried to prosecute me (UNSUCCESSFULLY) for using a vehicle on public roads without paying Road Tax ! The TRUTH of the matter was the woman who bought it from me after advertising it to sell has been driving it around without paying Road Tax. My duly completed and signed, dated section of V5 had gone astray, sending notifications to a previous address although we had paid Royal Mail to redirect our mail for 3 months. My U.K. full driving licence bears the correct address! DVLA’s Right hand DOES NOT KNOW WHAT the Left hand is doing ! DVLA is UNFIT FOR PURPOSE !!!

Confirmation of Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN)

Thank you for using DVLA Vehicle Licensing Online.
Your SORN has been successful.

The SORN will be valid until you tax, sell, permanently export or scrap the vehicle.

Any refund of vehicle tax due will be automatically issued to the name and address on our records.  If you pay by Direct Debit your Direct Debit will be cancelled.

Vehicle Registration Number: ST22 RKV
Reference Number: 9252 6270 6912 7997
Application Made On: 30/10/2024 18:30:09

THIS IS AN AUTOMATED EMAIL - Please do not reply as emails received at this address cannot be responded to.
Dear Mr Sunil Dharmabandhu
Direct Debit mandate number: 000000-000064-238762-001
Vehicle registration number: ST22RKV
Your bank has told us that your recent Direct Debit payment of £30.18 has been returned as there were insufficient funds in your account.
We will try to collect the Direct Debit payment again on 07/11/2024 so please ensure that you have sufficient funds in your account.
What you need to do next
You do not need to contact us, we will try to collect the Direct Debit payment again on 07/11/2024 so please make sure you have enough money in your bank account by this date. This collection date cannot be changed and payment cannot be made by a different method, i.e. credit/debit card.
If we are unable to collect your payment for a second time, your Direct Debit will be cancelled and we will contact you. Once cancelled we cannot re-instate a Direct Debit.
The Agency reserves the right to withdraw Direct Debit as a payment method from anyone repeatedly failing to make payments or not adhering to the terms of the Direct Debit guarantee.
If you need help with your financial situation, there is free and independent debt advice available. The government sponsored MoneyHelper can help you find support at adviser.moneyhelper.org.uk
Your Direct Debit will automatically renew when the vehicle tax is due.

They're crap
Really need to update their website, may as well be chalk and slate

Bet they are quick to send fines out though, people try to do the right thing, just unfortunately cant

Changed my address on my V5, was not received. I contacted them 5 weeks after (you know how the Royal Mail can be), was told I had to pay £25 for a replacement. The website states this only applies if contacting them AFTER 6 WEEKS. I informed them on their own processes, clearly stated on their website, highlighted in case they can’t read. Now we are constantly back and forth and I have made an official complaint.

Also, today has been the icing on the cake trying to change my address on my license.

Just to clarify, their ‘updated’ and ‘improved’ website is nothing of the sort. It’s so prehistoric that the Neanderthals probably built it.

The website informed me that the 2 numbers in section 5 were wrong, resulting in the website claiming my license must be lost, stolen or defaced, none of which are true because the license is literally in my hand. The only thing defaced is me after I claw at my face in frustration.

To summarise, the DVLA is awful. Wouldn’t recommend.

The new usage of AI on the GOV UK portal is a real mess! It just came to make our lives miserable! "Confirm someone’s identity" results: "The details were correct but our online checks couldn't confirm them". Tried dozens of time. What a joke! Cannot have the service because of this non sense system! Wake up GOV UK IT Department! Time to make your job properly? Nobody cares! No one to help us! I am over 2 years with this problem. Contacted the Gov IT Department by email, several calls made (hunged up at some point), no one able to help! How ridiculous! It is like to plan to land on Mars! Incompetent people!

In recent years, I've been paying for my vehicle road tax by monthly direct debit. The tax is due for renewal at the beginning of November, and I wanted to change the monthly direct debit to an annual payment, i.e. - pay once for the whole year and save some money. I thought it might have been a simple, online process - not so!! I went round and round in circles on that damn website. Two days later, I was no further forward.

I ended up cancelling the Direct Debit with my bank, so now, I will not be taxed at all, once November comes.

I phoned DVLA and listened to the automated messages which listed all the options to choose. I'm sure this voice used to be a lady with a nice Welsh accent. Not any more. It's an awful sounding, AI bot thing. Very unwelcoming and unfriendly.

When I finally got to speak to a 'real human', it didn't get much better. The representative seemed totally artificial and inhuman, almost like all the personality had been sucked out of her. Maybe she was actually a bot? Who can tell nowadays? She was blunt, and fairly unhelpful. The main takeaway I got was that a vehicle tax reminder would NOT be sent to me. I have no idea how much the tax will be for my vehicle.

I am no further forward.

The DVLA has gone even further downhill in the past few years. It never used to be THIS bad, I'm sure!

So after not receiving a new V5C for the car I purchased in May this year (18 weeks & counting), and with the dealership not answering call's & the salesman involved not answering messages I decided to ring this place to query if there was even an application request, 5 to 10 min waiting time they said, after 21 mins I hung up, absolute shambles, and that music is pure s***e