Vehicle tax Direct Debit payments
Cancel a Direct Debit
DVLA will cancel your Direct Debit when you tell them your vehicle’s been:
- sold or transferred to someone else
- taken off the road, for example, you’re keeping it in a garage - this is called a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN)
- written off by your insurance company
- scrapped at a vehicle scrapyard
- stolen - you’ll have to apply for a refund separately
- exported out of the UK
The Direct Debit will also be cancelled if you no longer have to pay vehicle tax because you’ve told DVLA:
- it’s being used by a disabled person
- the vehicle is historic (it’s over 40 years old)
If you overpaid your tax
You’ll automatically get a refund cheque for any full months left on your vehicle tax. The refund is calculated from the date DVLA gets your information.
If you cancel your Direct Debit just before a monthly payment is due, DVLA may still take the payment. You’ll automatically get a refund within 10 working days if this happens.
Cancelling the Direct Debit for other reasons
If you cancel your Direct Debit with your bank or building society for any other reason, you must tax your vehicle again using either:
- a Direct Debit from an account with enough money in it
- another payment method, for example, by debit or credit card