Budget changes - impact on EVs?

[Oldgreybeard]

When I first heard the news that EVs were going to be subject to VED from April 2025 I assumed that, as has always been the case, this would only apply to new cars bought after than date. VED changes have never been made retrospective, with the exception the removal of the very short lived luxury car tax in 2019. Reading the fine print in the announcement, it seems that all EVs made after 2017 are now going to pay £165/year VED, and the luxury car tax is being re-introduced for any new cars over £40k.

Personally I don't mind paying basic rate VED, seems fair to me, but I'd very much like to see it ring fenced for road costs and associated environmental improvements, rather than go into the general taxation pot. Given that a lot of EVs are more than £40k, I can't help feeling that this is going to dampen enthusiasm for them, if owners have to fork out several hundred pounds a year for the first few years of ownership. For us, as we don't do many miles a year, we'd be better off buying an old diesel car that will remain zero rated after these changes, and that seems to me to be barking mad. We could even buy a newer diesel car, that remains eligible for the £20/year VED rate and run it on home made biodiesel and save a fair bit of cash.

[Stinsy]

So BEV-owners will pay £165 while loads of petrol and diesel owners on legacy VED rates will pay £0, £20, or £30.

Hardly seems "fair"!

[nowty]

In that case, SWMBO BMW i3 should stay zero. , although by 2025 I suspect SWMBO would have demanded a replacement.

[Oldgreybeard]

So BEV-owners will pay £165 while loads of petrol and diesel owners on legacy VED rates will pay £0, £20, or £30.

Hardly seems "fair"!

That's my take on it. I had to read and re-read the fine print in the published announcement to be sure this is really what the government are doing. Be interesting to see what happens to the prices of second-hand diesel and petrol cars that are still eligible for zero or low VED rates. Be a boon for the thousands of Prius taxis in use, where the zero or low VED is one reason they've become so popular as taxis.

[nowty]

So BEV-owners will pay £165 while loads of petrol and diesel owners on legacy VED rates will pay £0, £20, or £30.

Hardly seems "fair"!

My last ICE car, a 2 litre diesel automatic was only £20 which at the time I could not comprehend.

[Stinsy]

So BEV-owners will pay £165 while loads of petrol and diesel owners on legacy VED rates will pay £0, £20, or £30.

Hardly seems "fair"!

That's my take on it. I had to read and re-read the fine print in the published announcement to be sure this is really what the government are doing. Be interesting to see what happens to the prices of second-hand diesel and petrol cars that are still eligible for zero or low VED rates. Be a boon for the thousands of Prius taxis in use, where the zero or low VED is one reason they've become so popular as taxis.

I believe that pre-2017 £0 rated BEVs and PHEVs will move into the £20 category...

[smegal]

Interestingly, 2025 is the year that Volvo reckon EV will reach price parity with ICE.

[Mr Gus]

Just another day of "doing the right thing " crass stupidity whip across your back government overseer BS mate.

stupid, stupid, stupid & why the hole is getting deeper.

You want a ladder to get outta that hole? ..tough, not enough profit, ..green crap etc.
(muttered whilst blowing smoke rings from cigars on fat padded @rses at cop27 etc)

What is the point in trying eh?

[marshman]

Since they first introduced emissions based VED for cars first registered after 1st March 2001 it hasn't been fair. It is now such a mess with identical cars registered a couple of days apart on different rates. Others on the low VED rates never have an increase as they are rounded down inflation increases.

Can't see the problem with the + £40k luxury tax, If you can afford an oversized £40k + technobox, then you can afford the tax. There are plenty of four door, four/five seat smaller EVs at less than £40k. Discuss

Introducing VED on EV's and the removal of the purchase grants is akin to the removal of FITs from generation (PV, Wind etc.). The sale/purchase/take up has reached a point where they are not needed persuade take up i.e. they have done their job - all they are no doing now is subsidising people who can afford to purchase without. IMHO in the current economic climate the money is better spent elsewhere!

[Oldgreybeard]

To use the FiT analogy, what's just happened would be akin to all of us getting older FiT rates being told that instead of them being guaranteed for 25 or 20 years they would end in April 2025 (mine doesn't end until March 2034). Lots of people funded their systems when FiTs was around by borrowing and using the "guaranteed" FiT payments to pay off their loans, not to mention all the rent-a-roof companies that took advantage of that 25 year/20 year guarantee.