I called the Orpington DVLA office today. Each time you have to call the DVLA in Swansea, get through their automated service, and then speak to someone who can then put you through. Apparently local DVLA offices DO NOT have direct dial numbers.

Anyway, I got through to Orpington DVLA who tell me that they do not deal with kit car registrations because they do not have the facilities to carry out a kit car inspection. SO WHY ON EARTH WERE YOU HAPPY TO ACCEPT THE DOCUMENTS FACE TO FACE FOR KIT CAR REGISTRATION WHEN MATT TRIED TO REGISTER THE CAR ON THE DAY OF THE SVA AT THE VERY SAME OFFICE?

At this point I can't help but think that someone is taking the piss and I'm just not noticing!

The lady told me that Wimbledon is the nearest place that can help me. This is actually nearer to us than Orpington, but Matt decided to use Orpington because you can park more easily.

So back to the automated service, back to speaking to someone at head office, and then through to Wimbledon DVLA. I spoke to a girl, explained for what seems like the 100th time that I am trying to register a kit car, and immediately the girl seems very on the ball.

She said, "I don't even know why Orpington let you get as far as they did! They have no way of registering kit cars because they are too small there to inspect them. I'm going to get Orpington to forward everything they have that relates to you in first class mail so I'll receive it within a day or so. All we need to do is set up a vehicle inspection where you drive the car to our office just to check it over, and then we can handle the rest with the documents that are already filled out. You can fill out anything else on the day if it's missing. Let me give you my direct dial number..."

Ok so we have gone from "offices do not have a direct dial number, you have to ring through Swansea." To, "Here is my direct line." I'm beginning to like this girl a lot.

We set up and kit car inspection for 27th May 2008 and from what I'm told, the car should be road legal from that point onwards.

Why oh why didn't I call Wimbledon first? Up until now I had absolutely nothing good to say about the DVLA at all, and now I have just spoken to someone who is literally going out of her way to help me.