Category B
A vehicle from which spare parts may be salvaged, but the bodyshell should have been crushed and the car should never return to the road.

have you got a V5 (TAx Book) for the car?
are you Driving the car?
Where did you buy it? Private/Trade?


What is a VIC Check
The Vehicle Inspection Certificate was introduced in 2003 to discourage people from using the identity of cars that have been written-off to disguise stolen vehicles. The VIC confirms that a vehicle is one that has been in an accident, has been repaired and is being returned to the road.

The DVLA will be notified of any vehicle that has been written-off by an insurance company or scrapped by it's owner. Once this vehicle has been identified in this way it will need a VIC before being returned to the road and before Car Tax (road fund license) can be issued. Once the DVLA has been notified of a written-off vehicle, the V5 Registration Document must be surrended to them. Once the car has been repaired and a VIC issued, the DVLA will issue a replacement V5 document enabling the owner to obtain their Car Tax.

Again just to to what has already been said any vehicle that is either a cat C/D can be driven on the public roads given that it has been repaired, inspoected and given a pass certificate by an engineer as well as requiring an MOT.

Check the documents as Scottie said V5/and engineers report

nearly had this problem myself with my first car, but i checked up before i bought it and it was a write off. if you bought it from a dealer then you can take it back and get a refund, cos im pretty sure by law they can't sell cars like that. if you bought private however then i think your screwed :(

Originally Posted by Zer0

nearly had this problem myself with my first car, but i checked up before i bought it and it was a write off. if you bought it from a dealer then you can take it back and get a refund, cos im pretty sure by law they can't sell cars like that. if you bought private however then i think your screwed :(

It all depends on the cat if it's c/d not a prob just have the necesarry checks done and have the paper work

It can be put back on the road depending on it's state of function. It would need to be inspected but not sure what arrangements are made. It shouldn't have been sold as a Cat B if the neccessary paperwork wasn't included... I'd go back and enquire about it as with no documentation to prove it's road worthy, you can get heavily fined for driving the car in an illegal state. Does the car start and run ok? If so, have you looked at the engine to see if there is noticeable damage? I would not risk driving it about as if you get pulled, you aint got a leg to stand on.

Originally Posted by TackyAuto

It can be put back on the road depending on it's state of function. It would need to be inspected but not sure what arrangements are made. It shouldn't have been sold as a Cat B if the neccessary paperwork wasn't included... I'd go back and enquire about it as with no documentation to prove it's road worthy, you can get heavily fined for driving the car in an illegal state. Does the car start and run ok? If so, have you looked at the engine to see if there is noticeable damage? I would not risk driving it about as if you get pulled, you aint got a leg to stand on.

If it is a cat B it should not be on the road no matter how much paper work (remember if your vehicle is a cat B your ins is null and void as well) so put this way if it's on the public highway pc plod will take it and 6 points on your papers

i'd like to know if the chassis numbers/Vin plate are welded in, because it could be a stolen car masked as a cat b.

Yeah that Zulu mate you need to got to the police (cover yourself)

I'm suspected they aren't being a cat b on the road, but who knows. It does sound about right that the car is deemed never to be driven but then surely there is some instances where it's been put back on with the DVLA's approval? It's been a while since I've had any involvement with category repairs so it could be that I've forgotten information about it. It must be notified to the police though. Did you buy it privately or via trade? Either way, if the police get a whiff of it being illegal, you want to get the hell out of the way otherwise you'll end up being punished for it. Lesson for the future, do any vital checks on a car before purchase... It gives you the option to walk away