One cold morning you turn the key and your car engine does not fire up. You found that the vehicle has a flat-dead battery read more
New road tax rules to punish green car owners
28/06/2019 Mercedes-Benz A180 Hatch AMG Line 7G-DCT Auto - £23,057 Save 16.7% - £4,619 off list price
27/06/2019 Skoda Octavia Hatch 1.0TSi 115 SE 6Spd - £15,161 with cash purchase, or £14,917 including deposit contribution with Skoda PCP finance APR 5.2% Save 23.9% - £4,693 off list price
26/06/2019 Ford Focus Hatch 5Dr 1.0T EcoBoost 100 Zetec 6Spd - £15,437 Save 21.5% - £4,218 off list price
25/06/2019 Fiat 500 Hatch 3Dr 0.9TwinAir 85 StopStart EU6 Lounge - £11,563 Save 24.7% - £3,802 off list price
Changes to road tax will punish owners of green cars who help reduce pollution when new rules come into place in 2017.
The new road tax rules, which are set be introduced from April 2017, will see any newly registered car that emits 1g/km of CO2 will cost its owner a flat rate of £140 a year for the first six years.
This means that owners of new cars that emit less than 101g/km CO2 will no longer benefit from not having to spend on Vehicle Excise Duty, instead they could pay up to £820 alongside fuel and insurance costs.
By 2023, it is estimated that the new Vehicle Excise Duty rules will generate around £5.15 billion of revenue for HM Treasury. It's also estimated that around £4.69bn of that will come from cars that emit 1-130g/km of CO2, despite these currently costing nothing in the first year.
Cars that produce a lot more pollution will also be punished by having to pay £500 a year in road tax, however when the new rules come into action it is reported that the driver will be £925 better off over six years if the car's list price is less than £40K.
This is because cars with a list price in excess of £40,000 are also subjected to an annual charge of £310 from year two to six.
Speaking of the upcoming rule change, Tim Pollard, Digital Editor-in-Chief of Parkers', which carried out the research, commented: "We recognise that the Government has to act to keep VED car tax up to date with cleaner engine technology, but some of the quirks of the new system uncovered by Parkers' investigation are distinctly unfair to Britain's motorists.
"We predict widespread confusion among car buyers; this time next year, the goalposts are moving dramatically and many people's tax bills will rise significantly."
Can you avoid the changes to road tax?
Motorists hoping to avoid these revised rules are being advised to lease their car. This is because car owners who acquire their car on contract hire can find themselves not having to worry about road tax costs as most leasing companies handle that additional cost.
To find out more about personal leasing or Personal Contract Hire (PCH) click here.
