NCJ Number
211699
Date Published
2005
Length
28 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses how the United Kingdom's vehicle registration and licensing system can be reformed to increase compliance with vehicle taxation law and other vehicle regulations.
Abstract
The key objectives of the British vehicle registration and licensing system are identification of motor vehicles and their keepers, the collection of vehicle excise duty, compliance check for a mandatory certificate for all vehicles over 3 years old, and compliance check for compulsory insurance requirement. Although the system is one of the most user-friendly in the world, it has not been sufficiently effective as a taxation and control instrument; for example, in 2002 there was an estimated 5.5 percent evasion rate for vehicle excise duty. Abandoned cars are also becoming more of a problem. In addition, nearly 340,000 cars are stolen in the United Kingdom every year, with approximately 120,000 never recovered. The British Government commissioned the Jill Dando Institute of Crime Science to address the deficiencies in the system. This chapter describes the process by which the system was assessed and modified to improve the identification of vehicles, to minimize the evasion of vehicle excise duty and other vehicle regulations, to link a car with a person, and to ensure that reforms do not lead to social exclusion. The evaluation of the system led to 11 recommendations that address database inaccuracy, the insecurity of vehicle identification systems, inadequate enforcement, the lack of a strategic overview, and crime prevention as a priority. The chapter concludes with a discussion of implementation procedures and difficulties. 6 notes and 15 references