On Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:31:57 +0000 (GMT), "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

Think you'll find they will change the registration to your name quite
easily. Their main purpose appears to be collecting the VED.

Indeed. I had a couple of abandoned cars in the past and simply
registered them to me, telling the DVLA the facts.
They didn't give a toss and sent me the new logbook with my name in
it.
Of course, if the PO had turned up, I'd have taken off the money I'd
spent and given him it back, but it never happened.