Road Tax Charge (UK)

[murph2004]

Recently bought i3 ReX 67 plate. Fuming to be told after the completed sale, Annual Road Tax is £120.
Just really don't understand. Any suggestions as to why this might be? If that can be changed?
Friends have full petrol cars and pay either nothing or £20 a year!
Many thanks
Andrew

 

[JohnWasser]

My guess is that taxes on petrol pay for road maintenance. Since your car doesn't use petrol, they have to get the taxes out of you a different way.

 

[baz99]

I have a January 2017 I3 REX which I pay £0.00 road tax. If you have an I3 registered after April 2017 I believe you have to pay annual road tax which I think is £135.00....... sorry for the bad news..... seems a bit harsh!

 

[MagicCarpet]

May depend upon the juristicion - has something changed in April 2017?
I'm in NZ and EVs currently have temporary exemption from Road User Charges - which apply to "non petrol powered vehicles" at the rate of 7c per km travelled.

The i3 REX does use petrol, its a PHEV. I imagine if full road tax were to be applied to PHEV, there would be inequity.

For example, Mitubishi Outlander PHEV might do 200km in a day of which only 35km can be sourced from external electricity.
The i3 PHEV forcibly runs a 10km mtce cycle every 60 days on petrol also the earlier models would be using petrol for more than half a 200km journey.

Petrol is taxed something like 70c a litre and other fuels - Diesel, kerosine and electricity are not, but vehicles pay the road tax. Petrol PHEV should not be paying both.
Ralph

 

[jadnashuanh]

As more and more EVs hit the roads, paying for the highway infrastructure based on fuel taxes will become way lopsided. Expect everyone to eventually end up paying a per distance tax and the fuel taxes at the pump may go away. The administration of that could be messy, but I think it will happen, maybe sooner rather than later in some markets.

 

[alex29a]

Yes this suggests how the government just dishes out road taxes randomly willie nillie without any basis whatsoever, or knowing exactly what they are doing to treat motorists with some respect. They need the money, so they just sit down and seemingly might as well toss a coin. I have friends who also pay £0 or £20 also on full petrol cars. Its something to do with the date I think, with this fancy new system.
Cars registered from 1st April 2017 are penalised.
REX registered before that date pays £0..
Registered after that it should be £145 pa.
And if list price was over £40k, the first years tax is £145 (being kind) .
the 2nd - 5th year will be £480 pa.
The logic is, these people look like they have money. let's milk them .

 

[alex29a]

Although Rex registered before 1Apr2017 still pays £0, and it used to enjoy free london congestion. from Oct 2021 this privilege no longer applies.
and soon enough the £0 tax ( to be reviewed annually) will become £145 or the equivalent going rate. because they class rex as hybrid . which it strictly is not. depends on who defines hybrid.
And yes in time the £0 for pure EVs will be taxed also, as more EVs hit the road, just silly to miss the tax revenue otherwise..

 

[alex29a]

And not forgetting, that someone has to pay for all the nice extra wide big bicycle lanes to finance cyclists who don't need to pay a penny.

 

[o2cool4g63]

They or any country should charge tax on vehicles base on weight and how many miles driven. This is the only fair way to charge tax. After all its about road infrastructure and repairs. Then if you want to tax more based on co2 output that should be a totally different catagory. Then if you look to make money... lol this could go on...

 

[jackobyte]

Capitalist societies can never be and are not intended to be fair! Quiet the reverse.

 

[Toadhall]

Recently bought i3 ReX 67 plate. Fuming to be told after the completed sale, Annual Road Tax is £120.
Just really don't understand. Any suggestions as to why this might be? If that can be changed?
Friends have full petrol cars and pay either nothing or £20 a year!
Many thanks
Andrew

 

[Toadhall]

Recently bought i3 ReX 67 plate. Fuming to be told after the completed sale, Annual Road Tax is £120.
Just really don't understand. Any suggestions as to why this might be? If that can be changed?
Friends have full petrol cars and pay either nothing or £20 a year!
Many thanks
Andrew

You did well! My i3 Rex is April 2017, and today I had a reminder to tax it for £175!!!
But my i8 is free. Explain that, please.

 

[Madelvic]

I have a January 2017 I3 REX which I pay £0.00 road tax. If you have an I3 registered after April 2017 I believe you have to pay annual road tax which I think is £135.00....... sorry for the bad news..... seems a bit harsh!

Currently £180 according to my source. This is for alternative fuel cars described as

"Alternative fuel vehicles include hybrids, bioethanol and liquid petroleum gas"

From next April this changes retrospectively for all i3 owners. This is a quote from the Gov website

Electric, zero or low emission cars registered between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2025​

You will pay the standard rate. This will be £195.

Electric, zero or low emission cars registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017​

These vehicles will move to the first band that has a VED value. This will be £20.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vehicle...cars registered on or after,This will be £195.

 

[drcarrera]

Currently £180 according to my source. This is for alternative fuel cars described as

"Alternative fuel vehicles include hybrids, bioethanol and liquid petroleum gas"

From next April this changes retrospectively for all i3 owners. This is a quote from the Gov website

Electric, zero or low emission cars registered between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2025​

You will pay the standard rate. This will be £195.

Electric, zero or low emission cars registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017​

These vehicles will move to the first band that has a VED value. This will be £20.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vehicle-tax-for-electric-and-low-emissions-vehicles#:~:text=Electric, zero or low emission cars registered on or after,This will be £195.

So those of us with BEV i3s should ensure we renew our tax in early March. That way we'll get a year's extra free VED.

 

[oldstumpybiker]

So those of us with BEV i3s should ensure we renew our tax in early March. That way we'll get a year's extra free VED.

That's a good idea, although I think we would have to do it in Feb as the tax rules change on 1st March I believe? I wonder if it'll work then or DVLA will get wise to it, as this could work for lots of cars not just electric as the tax categories are all changing then.

 

[mojo]

or DVLA will get wise to it

You can't be certain of anything with the civil service, but lots of people (including me) having been exploiting this "loophole" for many months - if they were going to change the rules, you would expect them to have done it by now...

 

[oldstumpybiker]

You can't be certain of anything with the civil service, but lots of people (including me) having been exploiting this "loophole" for many months - if they were going to change the rules, you would expect them to have done it by now...

Fingers crossed! Great tip though!

 

[mfogarty]

If you try and register earlier then your due date you will have to provide a specific reason as to why you are doing so. Telling the truth may not go down so well!

 

[drcarrera]

If you try and register earlier then your due date you will have to provide a specific reason as to why you are doing so. Telling the truth may not go down so well!

I'm just renewing on-line every month, just in case they close the loophole at some point. I don't think there are any specific questions iirc.

 

[mojo]

If you try and register earlier then your due date you will have to provide a specific reason as to why you are doing so.

There is no requirement to give a reason, let alone a "specific reason", when renewing VED.

There is neither any reason to tell the truth, nor to tell lies. The system permits it, and the rules don't prohibit it.