Buynewnowto beatthetaxman
LOOKING for a new car? Get your skates on, or be clobbered by the taxman. New road tax rules from April 1 will see the tax on popular family cars and eco-friendly vehicles rocket by hundreds of pounds as the Government tightens the screws on hard-pressed motorists to raise billions in extra revenue.
Many consumers haven’t yet twigged. But expect a big lastminute rush to the showrooms as the penny finally drops. Consumer website HonestJohn.
co.uk reckons up to seven in ten new car buyers will pay more road tax.
Cars once considered ‘ green’ will be hit by changes brought in by former Chancellor George Osborne in his 2015 Budget, while buyers of some of the most polluting and gas- guzzling vehicles could be quids-in.
From April 1, the UK’s bestselling car — the low-emissions Ford Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost 100PS — will cost £540 to tax over four years. It costs nothing now. But buyers of Ford’s V8 Mustang, which emits three times more CO2 than the Fiesta, stand to save £245 over the same period.
Tax on a low-emissions Nissan Qashqai 1.5 dCi 110PS, currently nothing over four years, will rise to £540 over the same period.
If bought now, tax over four years on a Vauxhall Corsa SRi 1.0i Turbo (90PS) three- door hatchback is £60 (zero in the first year, subsequent three years at £20). That will soar to £560 over four years after April 1. The same goes for the Astra SRi 1.0i Turbo ( 105PS) Start/ Stop ecoFLEX five-door hatchback.
Currently, vehicles that emit 99g/km or less qualify for zero excise duty.
From April 1, the current sliding-scale, 13-band tax system will be replaced by three new bands — zero, standard, and premium — plus a surcharge for electric cars above £40,000.
A special rate will apply in the first year of new ownership, ranging from zero up to £ 2,000, depending on CO2 emissions.
From year two onwards, most owners of ‘green’ cars will pay a flat rate of £140 a year.
So, a driver buying a new hybrid car (petrol- electric), such as a Toyota Prius, currently exempt from road tax, will pay £10 in year one and a £140 ‘flat rate’ per year thereafter.
Gas-guzzlers costing under £40,000 will also benefit from this new £140 flat rate because it is less than they currently pay.
But cars costing over £40,000 will be forced to pay an extra £310 a year for five years.
Electric Tesla S buyers will have to pay an additional £930.
The changes do not affect existing cars bought before April 1. These will remain on the current tax scales.