The single most common misunderstanding in a private sale is that the log book proves ownership. It does not. The V5C names the registered keeper, which is the person responsible to the DVLA for the vehicle, and a finance company, a leasing firm or a parent can be the legal owner of a car whose keeper is somebody else entirely. Getting the transfer right matters for tax, for enforcement and for the record the next buyer will read.
Vehicle transfer online, at the kerb, before the buyer drives away
The DVLA service changes the registered keeper and posts a new log book to the new keeper. The seller runs it with the registration and the log book to hand, and the confirmation arrives by email within minutes. It cannot be used if the log book has already gone to DVLA by post, or if there is no log book at all. Doing it while both parties are still standing there is the only version that protects the seller, because the record updates from that moment rather than from whenever the paperwork arrives.
No log book, and what replaces it
A buyer who takes a vehicle with no log book applies for a registration certificate on form V62. A seller with no log book has to write to DVLA in Swansea with their own name and address, the registration, the make and model, the exact date of sale and the new keeper's name and address. Both routes work and both are slower than the online service, which is the practical argument for refusing to complete a private sale until the V5C is physically present.
Tax stops, it does not travel
The moment DVLA records the keeper change the vehicle tax is cancelled and any full months remaining are refunded to the seller. Nothing is passed to the buyer. The buyer must tax the vehicle before driving it, or declare a SORN if it is going straight off the road, and a direct debit set up by the previous keeper is cancelled automatically. A buyer who assumes the tax came with the car is driving untaxed from the first mile.
What the next buyer sees afterwards
A completed transfer increments the recorded keeper count, which is the field a later history check will surface as number of previous keepers. It does not record the price, the reason or the condition. If the vehicle is written off and scrapped by an insurer rather than sold on, the keeper tells DVLA separately, and that is the event that puts a salvage category against the registration for good.
Questions people ask about transfer of ownership
Does the V5C prove I own the car?
No. It records the registered keeper. Where a car is on hire purchase or a lease, the finance company remains the legal owner until the agreement ends, and the keeper on the log book is not the owner.
How long does an online transfer take to show?
The keeper change is recorded at once and the seller gets an email confirmation. The new keeper's log book is posted separately and takes longer, which is normal and not a sign that anything failed.
Can I transfer a vehicle that still has finance on it?
You can change the keeper, but the finance company's interest follows the vehicle, and selling without settling the agreement leaves the buyer exposed to repossession. Run an outstanding finance check before money moves.
What happens to a personalised registration on transfer?
It moves only if it is taken off the vehicle first, through the DVLA retention or transfer service. Complete a keeper change with the plate still attached and the plate goes with the car.