Is the road tax system unfair on owners of older vehicles?
I run a 1998 BMW 318 Touring, owned since new, with a mileage of 128,000. I pay £215 road tax and my annual mileage is about 7000.
I feel the charge is unfair in that certain new models will pay nothing or just £30 in road tax. How can a car paying £30 and perhaps doing 25,000 miles every year have a lesser effect on the environment? I did write to my MP and the response I got was hard luck.
I feel the charge is unfair in that certain new models will pay nothing or just £30 in road tax. How can a car paying £30 and perhaps doing 25,000 miles every year have a lesser effect on the environment? I did write to my MP and the response I got was hard luck.
Asked on 2 November 2012 by RR, West Kilbride
Answered by
Honest John
The answer is hard luck. A tax system designed to encourage manufacturers to build and people to buy cars that emit less Co2 is bound to disadvantage owners of older cars. But you do pay less overall tax than drivers doing 25,000 miles a year because everyone has to pay about 80p in fuel tax and VAT on every litre of fuel.
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road tax
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