The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Tax discs have gone digital
Motorists can only renew their vehicle excise duty online
The car tax disc comes to the end of the road today – after 93 years.
From October 1, drivers will no longer be required to display the vehicle excise duty ( VED) disc on their windscreens, bringing to a finish a regulation that was introduced in 1921.
Although this is the end for the disc, it is not the end for the duty, which will still need to be paid.
Motorists are being offered the choice of applying for VED renewal on line or by visiting a Post Office.
One key change from tomorrow is that those buyingavehicle willnotbeable to take advantage of the remaining months and days of the car’s existing VED and will need to renew the tax.
Those selling a vehicle will be able to claim a refund from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) for unused months of road tax.
Those who have not paid their tax will be spotted on automatic number plate recognition cameras or by police checking the VED data information.
Ian Gallagher, the Freight Transport Association (FTA) lead on driver licensing and vehicle registration said: “This is a fundamental shift in the way that the DVLA carries
“This is a fundamental shift in way the DVLA carries out its business”
out its business, the removalof apaper discwhich was introduced in 1921 is just a first step towards more and more services moving online.
“The FTA believes that the challenge for the agency moving forwards is to ensure that the systems it designs consider all user groups and particularly bulk business sector requirements.”
The FTA said that the Government had said that switching to digital tax discs will cost £8million to set up but will save £2million a year in administrative costs within three years.
Motorists who fail to comply with the new system could face a £1,000 fine.
The RAC has expressed fears that, with the end of the paper disc, the number of motorists failing to pay to tax their car could become as high as the number who drive without insurance.
The motoring organisation said that this could result in a £167million a year loss to the Exchequer.
But the DVLA has said there is “no basis” to the RAC figures, adding that it was “nonsense” to suggest that getting rid of the tax disc would lead to an increase in vehicle tax evasion.