MOT and road tax

The DVLA fleet scheme explained (for 50+ vehicles)

DVLA runs a free fleet scheme for organisations with 50 or more vehicles registered to one address. It cuts down the paperwork of taxing and registering a large fleet. Here is what it offers, how to join, and how it fits with keeping track of MOT and tax dates.

By VCT · Published 15 October 2026 · 6 min read

The short answer

The DVLA fleet scheme is a free service for companies with a large number of vehicles. DVLA's guidance, DVLA fleet scheme: information and benefits (INF269), says it was introduced to help companies with the admin that comes with keeping a large fleet. Members get a dedicated helpdesk, can deal with DVLA in bulk, and can tax several vehicles in one transaction.

The scheme is still running. DVLA last updated its guidance on 18 December 2025, and GOV.UK still offers the online service for members.

This guide is general guidance, not legal advice.

Who can join

GOV.UK's page on getting information about your DVLA Fleet Scheme vehicles says you must have at least 50 vehicles registered to one address to join.

Once you're registered, DVLA gives you a 6-digit fleet code that is unique to the postcode of your premises. INF269 explains what that means for companies with more than one site:

  • you need a separate fleet code for each address
  • each code needs a different address
  • you must put the fleet code on every newly registered vehicle

INF269 also says to tell the dealerships you buy from about the code. Vehicles registered without it are not eligible for the fleet services.

What the scheme offers

INF269 lists these services for fleets of 50 or more vehicles:

  • A dedicated helpdesk. Direct phone and email access to DVLA's Commercial Vehicles Team.
  • Bulk dispatch. Log books (V5Cs) and tax reminders processed on the same day are sent to you together.
  • Bulk processing. You can send changes for many vehicles without filling in each V5C. If the changes are identical and come with a supporting document on headed paper, DVLA can process them in bulk.
  • Bulk taxing. Tax several vehicles in one transaction.
  • View Vehicle Record (VVR). An online service where you can view the vehicles registered to your fleet, with filters. It highlights vehicles that need taxing or are due an MOT.
  • V5C on demand. DVLA can stop sending you paper V5Cs, which saves storing them. You request one through VVR when you need it, for example before selling a vehicle. DVLA says it should arrive in 3 to 5 working days.
  • Online services. Tell DVLA online when you sell, transfer or buy a vehicle, and take a registration number off a vehicle or put one on.

On V5C on demand, INF269 notes that VVR can print a PDF of a vehicle's details, which should be accepted in place of a V5C in some cases. It advises getting a V5C for any vehicle that travels abroad, because the PDF won't be accepted in other countries.

Taxing vehicles through the scheme

Once you're on the fleet scheme, INF269 says you can apply for two ways of taxing every vehicle due for renewal in one transaction each month.

Post Office Licensing (POL)

POL is free to join. You pay from a pre-funded Post Office account, either at a Post Office branch you nominate or by emailing DVLA a spreadsheet of that month's renewals between the 4th and the 14th of the month. INF269 sets out some conditions:

  • the spreadsheet option only covers vehicles due for renewal, and any other taxing has to be done at a Post Office branch
  • vehicles that are not due may be rejected
  • HGVs that previously needed a Reduced Pollution Certificate won't be accepted by spreadsheet until their tax class is changed
  • you must have fleet insurance in place at the date of liability

Bulk Electronic Relicensing Transaction (BERT)

Under BERT, DVLA sends electronic tax reminders about 6 weeks before tax is due. You reply within 7 working days to say which vehicles need taxing, and DVLA takes payment by variable Direct Debit on the first working day of the month before the tax starts.

BERT is limited to vehicles 3 years old or less, in certain tax classes: private light goods, diesel and petrol cars, alternative fuel, electric, disabled, and light goods vehicles not over 3,500kg. INF269 says there are technical requirements and costs, and gives a separate contact for details. Heavy goods vehicles are not on that list, so for trucks POL is the option INF269 describes.

How to join

INF269 sets out these steps:

  1. Contact DVLA's Commercial Vehicles Team at fleetshd@dvla.gov.uk or on 0300 083 0016 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 4.30pm). Say which services you're interested in.
  2. Collect your existing V5Cs into batches of 100 or fewer.
  3. Post each batch to the Commercial Vehicles Team in Swansea with a covering letter on headed paper. The letter should state your request and give your company name and address, a contact name, phone number and email address.
  4. Once registered, you get your 6-digit fleet code. Use it on all new registrations and tell your dealerships.

To use VVR, DVLA needs the name and email address of a system administrator. You then get login details, spreadsheets to bring your fleet records up to date, and instructions for setting a password. INF269 says it is your responsibility to keep DVLA's record of your contact details up to date.

The scheme and your MOT and tax dates

The fleet scheme helps with tax and paperwork. It also gives you a view of your dates: GOV.UK says members can use the online service to see which vehicles need taxing and when, and MOT renewal dates. VVR highlights vehicles that need taxing or are due an MOT.

A few things are worth knowing:

  • It covers vehicles under your fleet code. VVR shows vehicles registered with DVLA under your fleet number. A vehicle registered without the code, or kept at a different address with its own code, won't be in the same view.
  • Trailers are separate. Annual tests on trailers are looked up by trailer identification number on DVSA's MOT history service. Our guide to checking an HGV's MOT explains how.
  • Someone still has to act. Seeing that a test is due doesn't book it. Decide who checks the list, how far ahead, and who books the test or pays the tax.
  • Other people may need to see it. Depot managers and drivers may need to know whether the vehicle in front of them is road legal.

If you're not in the scheme, GOV.UK points you to DVLA's vehicle information service and the MOT status check, which look up one registration at a time. Our guide to tracking MOT and tax dates across a fleet compares that with a spreadsheet and with software. For vehicles taken off the road, see company vehicles and SORN.

Where VCT fits

VCT does not connect to the DVLA fleet scheme, and it doesn't tax vehicles. If you're a member, keep using the scheme for taxing and paperwork.

What VCT does is keep watch on the dates. When you add a registration, it looks the vehicle up with DVLA and DVSA straight away. Every night it then rechecks every vehicle's road tax with DVLA and its MOT or HGV annual test with DVSA. Reminder emails go out on days you choose, separately for MOT and tax, and a weekly round-up goes to admins and managers. Each vehicle page shows its full DVSA MOT history. Managers can see the fleet, and drivers only see their own vehicle.

There are limits. DVSA's heavy vehicle test history starts in 2018, and trailers can't be checked automatically because they have no registration number. See fleet MOT and tax reminders and HGV fleet compliance.

For a fleet of 50 to 99 vehicles, VCT costs £3.00 per vehicle a month, so 50 vehicles cost £150 a month. The rate falls to £2.50 per vehicle for bigger fleets. For more than 200 vehicles, get in touch. It is monthly with no contract. See pricing.

Sources

Checked on 15 October 2026. This guide is general information, not legal advice.

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