Dear Sir or Madam,

Please confirm whether a Change of Keeper notification, made by
handing the V5 document to a local DVLA office, is actioned on your
database directly by that office or only after the document is
forwarded to DVLA Swansea

Please also state what physical method (Royal Mail, private courier
etc) is used to transport a V5 document, handed in to a local DVLA
office to notify a Change of Keeper, to DVLA Swansea

Yours faithfully,

Joe Horner

Dear Mr Horner

Thank you for your e-Mail dated 27 December 2008 in which you have
requested information relating to the handling of 'change of keeper'
notifications via a local Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
local office.

The information you have requested is being dealt with under the terms
of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and you will receive a
response within the statutory 20 working days from the date of receipt.
We will endeavour to respond to your request prior to the 20 working
days.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me quoting
the above reference number in any future communication.

Yours sincerely

Freedom of Information Champion
Local Services Network

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Dear Mr Horner

Thank you for your e-Mail dated 27 December 2008 addressed to DVLA,
Swansea, in which you have made a request for information under the
Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). I am replying as Head of
Customer Services and Compliance.

In answer to your first request:

+AJM-Please confirm whether a Change of Keeper notification, made by
handing the V5 document to a local DVLA office, is actioned on your
database directly by that office or only after the document is forwarded
to DVLA Swansea+AJQ

I should explain that the majority of notifications of vehicle keeper
changes are entered onto the Drivers/Vehicles databases by the Driver
and Vehicle Licensing Agency+IBk-s (DVLA+IBk-s) Centre of Operations in
Swansea. Each vehicle record is automatically de-noted with a change of
address notification. When Local Offices (LOs)/Regional Enforcement
Centres (RECs) are informed of keeper changes and changes of address, in
the course of enforcement cases, the information is forwarded to the
operational centre to update the vehicle database.

Additionally, in cases where the vehicle registration certificates
(V5C) are associated with vehicle registration number transfer and
retention applications, and which contain changes, the vehicle records
are updated by the LO who keys the relevant application(s).

In answer to your second request:

+AJM-Please also state what physical method (Royal Mail, private courier
etc) is used to transport a V5 document, handed in to a local DVLA
office to notify a Change of Keeper, to DVLA Swansea+AJQ

The safety and security of items of mail sent from DVLAs Network of
Local Offices to the Centre of Operations in Swansea is paramount to the
Agency. The Agency uses a secure mail courier to transport mail from
the Local Offices to Swansea. Daily collections are made from the Local
Offices.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. You are free to use it for
your own purposes, including any non-commercial research you are doing
and for the purposes of news reporting. Any other re-use, for example
commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright
holder.

Most documents supplied by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency will
have been produced by government officials and will be Crown Copyright.
You can find details on the arrangements for re-using Crown copyright on
the Office of Public Sector Information website at:

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/index.htm

If you are unhappy with the way the Agency has handled your request,
you may ask for an internal review. You should contact the Local
Services Network and Enforcement Directorate Freedom of Information
Champion, DVLA, +IBg-A+IBk Block, Longview Road, Morriston, Swansea, SA6
7JL.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you
have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. Further guidance of DfT complaints procedures are detailed in
Annex A.

Yours sincerely

(sent unsigned)

Steve Alexander
Head of Customer Services and Compliance

ANNEX A

DfT Complaints Procedures

You have the right to complain about the way in which your request for
information was handled and/or about the decision not to disclose all or
part of the information requested. In addition a complaint can be made
that DfT has not complied with its FOI publication scheme.

Your complaint will be acknowledged and you will be advised of a target
date by which to expect a response. Initially your complaint will be
re-considered by the official who dealt with your request for
information. If, after careful consideration, that official decides that
his/her decision was correct, your complaint will automatically be
referred to a senior independent official who will conduct a further
review. You will be advised of the outcome of your complaint and if a
decision is taken to disclose information originally withheld this will
be done as soon as possible.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you
have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner+IBk-s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

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