How to Put a Car Into the Trade: A DVLA Guide for Dealers and Sellers

Last updated 24 September 2026.

Every car you buy from the public, take in part exchange or pick up from a car buying service has to be “put into the trade” with DVLA. It is one of the most common jobs on a forecourt and one of the easiest to get wrong: the seller thinks the dealer has done it, the dealer thinks the seller has, and months later a speeding ticket lands on the wrong doormat. This guide explains what putting a car into the trade means, how to tell DVLA online or with the V5C/3 yellow slip, who does what, and what happens to the road tax. It is written for dealers first, with a section for anyone selling a car to a dealer.

This is general guidance based on DVLA’s published rules on GOV.UK as of September 2026, not legal advice. DVLA’s services and forms change, so check the linked GOV.UK pages before you rely on a detail.

What does “putting a car into the trade” mean?

Putting a car into the trade (also called bringing a car into the trade) means telling DVLA that a vehicle has been sold, part-exchanged or transferred to a motor trader. For DVLA, a motor trader can be a motor dealer, a car buying service, a motor auctioneer, a salvage dealer, a finance or insurance company, or a fleet operator (GOV.UK: tell DVLA you’ve sold, transferred or bought a vehicle).

When a car goes into the trade, DVLA removes the registered keeper from the vehicle record. The car does not get a new keeper while you have it in stock. It stays “in the trade” until you sell it to a customer, at which point you tell DVLA about the new keeper and they get a new log book. This is different from a private sale, where the V5C goes straight from one keeper to the next.

You will often hear the phrase on a forecourt alongside other shorthand like PX, stand-in and V5. If any of it is new to you, our A to Z of car dealer slang and motor trade jargon explains the lot.

How a dealer tells DVLA a car has come into the trade

You have two options. The online service is quicker and gives an instant update, so most dealers use it for every car.

Option 1: online, with the seller’s consent

Use DVLA’s buying a vehicle into trade service. According to DVLA you’ll need:

• the 11-digit document reference number from the latest log book (V5C)
• the seller’s consent to act on their behalf
• your trader details (the service starts by asking for the name of the business the vehicle is being sold to)

Before you submit, DVLA says you must make sure:

• the name and address on the V5C are correct, because that is where the seller’s confirmation and any tax refund will go
• any personalised registration number has been kept or transferred. A private plate has to be taken off before DVLA is told about the sale.

Once you have finished the online service, destroy the yellow “sell, transfer or part-exchange your vehicle to the motor trade” section of the log book. You do not need to send it to DVLA. The keeper is removed from the record, they are sent confirmation by post, and they automatically get a refund cheque for any full months of tax left (GOV.UK: sold, transferred or bought a vehicle).

The service is available from 7am to 9pm Monday to Friday and 7am to 8pm at weekends.

Option 2: the V5C/3 yellow slip by post

If you cannot use the online service, fill in the yellow “sell, transfer or part-exchange” section (the V5C/3) with your trader details and send the perforated section to:

DVLA
Swansea
SA99 1BD

Keep the rest of the V5C with the car. You need it, including the green “new keeper” slip, when you sell the car on.

Post is slower, and the seller stays on the record until DVLA processes the slip. If you take cars in late on a Saturday, it is still worth doing it online the same day.

What reference number do you need?

The number DVLA asks for is the 11-digit document reference number from the latest V5C, so check the log book you are given is the most recent one. DVLA’s vehicle enquiry service shows the date the latest V5C was issued, which you can compare with the issue date on the document (GOV.UK: get a vehicle log book).

Treat that number carefully. DVLA warns keepers not to share the document reference number, or photos or copies of the log book, with potential buyers, because they can be used to get a fraudulent copy and clone the car (GOV.UK: selling a vehicle). A careful seller may not send you a photo of their V5C with their valuation request. That is sensible, not awkward. Check the log book in person when you collect or complete the purchase.

Who does it: the seller or the dealer?

Either can, but only one of you needs to. DVLA’s online services let:

• the dealer notify DVLA “on behalf of” the seller, with their consent, or
• the seller notify DVLA themselves that they have sold to a motor trader.

The problem is when each side assumes the other has done it. DVLA is clear that the keeper is legally responsible for the vehicle until the motor trader or garage tells DVLA of the sale and their details have been removed from the record (Inside DVLA: how to tell DVLA you’ve sold or transferred your vehicle). Until then, parking tickets, speeding notices and other charges for the car can end up with the seller.

The simplest rule for a dealership: you tell DVLA, every time, before the seller leaves, and you tell the seller you have done it. Record it against the car so anyone in the business can see it has been done.

What happens to the road tax and the V5C?

Road tax. Vehicle tax does not transfer with the car. When DVLA is told the car has gone into the trade, the seller’s tax is cancelled and they automatically get a refund cheque for any full months left, worked out from the date DVLA gets the information. The cheque goes to the name and address on the log book, and a Direct Debit is cancelled automatically (GOV.UK: cancel your vehicle tax and get a refund). Some surcharges, such as card fees and Direct Debit surcharges, are not refunded.

For you as a dealer, that means a car in stock is untaxed. To drive it on the road, for example for a customer test drive or a delivery, you need to tax it or use trade licence plates. Trade plates let you and your customers drive vehicles your business holds for specific purposes, such as test drives, without taxing each one (GOV.UK: trade licence plates).

The V5C. The seller keeps nothing. If the seller tells DVLA online, GOV.UK tells them to give the log book, including the green new keeper slip, to the dealer and destroy the yellow section. If the dealer tells DVLA online, the dealer destroys the yellow section. Either way, the dealer ends up holding the rest of the V5C, ready for the next sale.

What dealers must do when they buy from the public

Telling DVLA is only part of the job. When you buy a car from a private seller, a part-exchange customer or through an online appraisal:

1. Check the V5C against the car and the person. The registration number, VIN, make, model and colour should match the car. The name and address should match the seller, and the V5C should be the latest one. If the seller is not the registered keeper, find out why before you pay.
2. Run a history check. Check the car is not recorded as stolen, has no outstanding finance and has not been written off. If it has a write-off category, our guide to Cat S and Cat N write-offs explains what that means for you.
3. Check the mileage. Compare it with the service history and the MOT history, and ask the seller to sign to say whether it is correct.
4. Deal with any private plate first. It must be kept or transferred before DVLA is told about the sale.
5. Tell DVLA online, then destroy the yellow slip, or fill in the yellow slip and post it the same day.
6. Keep a record of what you paid, who you bought from, the checks you made and the date you told DVLA.

Our guide to the legal requirements for running a used car dealership covers the wider rules, including why a write-off history or mileage problem you do not tell buyers about can be a misleading omission.

What dealers must do when they sell the car on

When you sell a car from stock to a customer who will keep it in the UK, DVLA says you need to (GOV.UK: sold, transferred or bought a vehicle):

1. Have the 11-digit document reference number from the latest V5C.
2. Give the green “new keeper” slip to the buyer.
3. Tell DVLA using the selling a vehicle out of trade service.
4. Destroy the rest of the log book.

The new keeper should get an email confirmation (if you gave their email address) and a new log book within 5 to 7 working days. If you cannot use the online service, fill in the log book and post it to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1BA.

Remind the customer that they must tax the car before they drive it. Tax is not transferred when a vehicle is sold, so they cannot drive away on the tax the previous owner had. They can tax it straight away using the reference number on the green new keeper slip (GOV.UK: tax your vehicle).

If the buyer is registering the car abroad, including the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Ireland, you cannot use the online service. Fill in the “permanent export” section instead.

Part exchanges

A part exchange is the customer selling their old car to you, so it goes into the trade in exactly the same way as a car you buy outright. The yellow section of the V5C is even named the “sell, transfer or part-exchange your vehicle to the motor trade” section. In practice:

• Tell DVLA about the part exchange online at the handover, while the customer is with you and has their log book.
• Put any private plate on the part exchange on retention or transfer first. Customers often want to move it to the car they are buying.
• Tell the customer their tax on the old car will be cancelled and refunded, and that their new car needs taxing before they drive it away.

If you value part exchanges remotely, Haswent’s appraisals let customers send photos and details of their car from their phone, so you know what you are taking in before they arrive. Our vehicle appraisal best practices cover how to value a part exchange fairly and protect your margin.

Common mistakes

Mistake	What to do instead
Buying a car without a V5C	DVLA advises not buying a vehicle without a log book. The seller then has to tell DVLA by letter, and you cannot check the keeper details. If you go ahead, get proof of ownership and a full history check first.
Both sides assuming the other told DVLA	Agree who is doing it. As a dealer, do it yourself before the seller leaves and show them the confirmation.
Posting the yellow slip after telling DVLA online	Once the online service is complete, destroy the yellow section. It does not need to go to DVLA.
Giving your buyer the whole log book	When you sell a car from the trade, give the buyer the green new keeper slip only, tell DVLA, and destroy the rest.
Using an old V5C	DVLA needs the reference number from the latest log book. Check the issue date against DVLA's vehicle enquiry service.
Forgetting the private plate	Take the personalised registration off before DVLA is told about the sale.
Driving untaxed stock	Tax does not come with the car. Tax it or use trade plates before it goes on the road.
A wrong address on the V5C	Check it before you submit. The seller's confirmation and tax refund go to the address on the log book.

If the seller has no log book at all, they must write to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1BD with their name and address, the registration number, the make and model, the exact date of sale and the name and address of the motor trader. DVLA can reject a notification that is missing any of these, which also affects the seller’s tax refund (GOV.UK: sold, transferred or bought a vehicle).

Selling your car to a dealer? What you need to do

If you are selling your car to a dealer, car buying service or garage, or part-exchanging it, here is what GOV.UK says to do if you want to tell DVLA yourself:

1. Find the 11-digit document reference number on your latest V5C log book.
2. If you want to keep a private plate, apply to take it off the car first.
3. Use DVLA’s sold a vehicle to the motor trade service. You’ll need the name of the business you sold it to.
4. Give the log book, including the green new keeper slip, to the dealer.
5. Destroy the yellow “sell, transfer or part-exchange” section.

You’ll get an email confirmation (if you gave your email address), a letter confirming you are no longer the keeper, and a refund cheque for any full months of tax left. If the dealer is telling DVLA for you, that is fine, but ask them to confirm they have done it. You stay legally responsible for the car until they do, so keep the confirmation.

How Haswent helps

Haswent’s stock management keeps the paperwork for each car in one place. Add a car by entering its registration and mileage and the vehicle details are filled in for you. You can view its MOT history, run MotorCheck history reports and record its condition, costs and days in stock. Online appraisals let you value cars from the public and part exchanges from photos before you commit to buying. For what happens after the car is in stock, see our stock management best practices from purchase to sale.

Contact us for a demo.

Sources

• GOV.UK: tell DVLA you've sold, transferred or bought a vehicle (including the motor trader options for buying into and selling out of trade)
• GOV.UK: selling a vehicle
• GOV.UK: cancel your vehicle tax and get a refund
• GOV.UK: tax your vehicle
• GOV.UK: trade licence plates
• Inside DVLA blog: how to tell DVLA online that you've sold or transferred your vehicle

Frequently asked questions