Would you like free road tax ?

[ghost123uk]

There is currently one of those HM Gov petitions to get the rolling 25 year road tax exemption thing back.

It is here -> https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/119497 should you wish to sign it.

The total of signatures is leaping up fast, minute by minute

Share it on other forums and social media folks

[james butler]

how would this be possible?
i thought the rolling tax exemption exists but cars have to be 40+ years old?
if they change it to 25 then all cars 25 years and older would automatically become tax exempt and i cant see the government losing out on all that cash from older car tax that their not getting from modern cars.

don't get me wrong i would more than like this to come to pass but i wouldn't hold your breath

[ghost123uk]

I take your point but you never know, every nudge in the right direction is a positive thing I reckon.
This petition has had a heck of a lot of support over on the VW T25 Forum and I am just trying to "spread the word" on other forums I use.

[the edmundator]

They've already lost shedloads of cash from the increase in people not bothering to pay now that you don't have to display a tax disc. I doubt they'll be interested in losing more from a reliable source.

[unknownmale]

I signed this. Not because I think they'll reinstate the 25 rolling tax as promised, but maybe they'll compromise at 30 or something?

[Village Idiots]

No harm in signing, but can't see it happening.

[james butler]

I signed it so here's hoping

[Lukeh17]

Signed. Less of us on the road, we should be appreciated not used to make money. My tax does nothing, as I live in an area where our roads are horrific!!

[whiteshark]

There are company cars up and down motorways paying zero tax or very little tax due to there emissions. They are still wearing the road and cause some pollution. There are a lot of drivers on here with limited mileage policy's paying ridiculous tax. I've signed this and posted it on other forums. Realy any car over 20 years old is a hobby, even if it is a daily, more miles on the odometer, more hassle, but that's part of the fun. Some reduction at least would not go a miss. Even a 25 year old tax bracket!

[james butler]

road tax should have been abolished years ago and just put it on the fuel OR the insurance as in both instances costs are based on how many miles you do each year.
if you have a gas guzzler and drive lots of miles then you pay more.
if your a hobbyist who rarely takes the car over 5000 miles a year then you will benefit from using the road less.
and those pounding the roads every day pay their fair share of the damages they cause.

[hiltow]

Right now, the Government doesn't want to lose any more revenue from VED than they are now seeing through the emmissions-based policy that's been in place over the last 15 years; what with so many newer cars paying little or no tax.

Even more so given that things are moving towards roads (and in particular the motorway and trunk road network) being funded exclusively from VED as opposed to general taxation sources. This is part why from 2017 most new vehicles will be paying more VED than now (a flat £140) unless a huge engine or true zero emission). This is how the new strategic roads operating company in England, Highways England, will soon be funded.

True, there's the 40 year exemption, but I'm sure the powers that be know that there are still more 1980s registered vehicles still in the national fleet that from previous decades by virtue if the fact of the growth in the numbers of cars over that decade and those since.

I object most to us having to pay the full £226 rate even though we probably do minimal mileage now each year, especially those of us with 1.6 engines that are just a few cc over the lower threshold.

Perhaps we should go for the middle ground - vehicles aged from 30 to 40 pay a reduced rate, say £75 for 12 months / £40 for 6 months. Nowadays, technology makes it relatively cheap and easy to administer differences in tax regimes.

[Lukeh17]

To all those out there that say we should pay this tax etc for the emissions we cause. I suggest to save the planet, we stop buying from China & India who cause tons and tons of pollution. Also maybe councils, particularly here in Surrey invest in road maintenance because simply throwing stones on a hole isn't going to work!!! Let's pray this petition kicks off and they have a debate :)

[the edmundator]

Which? magazine this month has an interesting piece on car emissions - basically outside of laboratory settings where the manufacturers do their tests, many modern cars fail to meet 1990s emissions standards. And let's not forget about the massive pollution that's caused by manufacturing new cars.

Although it still makes more sense to me that global warming is caused simply by the massive global increase in exothermic reactions since the industrial revolution, than by variations in different gases.

[james butler]

i remember years ago being told by mechanics that diesels are dirty and cause cancer so try not to breathe in the emissions and dont touch the oil etc etc
yet for how long have these carcinogenic things being allowed tax concessions because of "low emissions" compared to petrol's, yet that black rubbish that comes out of the back is even worse than anything co or co2 combined can do because long term as its not readily obsorbed by the planet.
and to top it off the government only recently (;last year i think) acknowledged how dangerous diesel emission particulate really is and has been since diesels have been invented.

sorry rant over

at the end of the day if tax was levied on the fuel you would pay accordingly for
1. how economic your car is and use less fuel( if you want to get good mpg and save the world you can buy a car accordingly)
2. if you use the roads a lot more you will use more fuel therefore pay more tax. (therefore paying more tax covers your fair wear and tear on the road)
3 the payment of tax IS unavoidable because you need the fuel to make your car go (no more untaxed vehicles on the road or a need to declare sorn)
4. you will also reap the benefits of keeping your car in good condition as a car thats well maintained will go further on a tank of fuel than one thats not (which annoys me when a poorly maintained car is pumping out the fumes because the owner refuses to service it and is buying fuel from the cheapest place they can yet pays the same rate of tax someone who does look after their car)

[the edmundator]

James, I think your system works only until a significant number of cars don't use conventional fuels. I can see electric or hydrogen cars (or both) gaining significant market share over the next 10-20 years. I already see a reasonable number of BMW i3 and Nissan Leafs around Bedford. Then you'd probably have to have a "Big Brother" monitoring system to charge users per mile, or go back to a single payment system like now.

Having said that, another tax on fuel (there are several already) would probably be a cost-effective solution for the remaining fossil-fuel users.