I wonder how much it will be for push bikes…
This seems like a reasonable move to me, not something they come out with often.
Road maintenace costs scale by weight and distance, not by fuel usage, so streamlining the purchase of RUC and shifting the point-of-tax entirely to a separate system rather than building it into petrol prices makes sense.
My only concern is that rather than keeping the shift fiscally neutral, they may use the restructuring as an opportunity to reduce the road-maintenace tax burden on vehicles and pull more from the general tax pool instead, thus incentivising greater private vehicle usage.
They are lying when they say it will be based on cost and distance. If that was true 90% of the taxes collected would be paid by commercial traffic. Instead they will make sure 90% is paid by you and me while those loaded trucks tear up the roads at 1/10th the cost.
It already is based on weight and distance for diesel vehicles, which is all heavy trucks. Whether the current system costs all vehicles properly according to their road maintenance contribution is not something I can answer, but the heavier your vehicle is the more your road users cost for the same distance.
It already is based on weight and distance for diesel vehicles, which is all heavy trucks.
Not at the same rates that passenger cars will be charged.
If they applied the same charges to the passenger vehicles we would pay next to nothing because cars weigh so much less than a loaded truck and travel 1/100th the distance per day.
they will set different rates per kilogram and kilometer for cars to make sure we end up paying 90% of all road user charges levied. Mark my words.
I agree that it seems to make sense. I’m curious about how it will work in practice though. The current RUC process is pretty shit, I can’t imagine bringing millions of petrol vehicles into that process.
I know they have said they will have some digital system to solve it but it remains to be seen what exactly that will look like. Hard to do without GPS tracking every car 🙃
Simplest option for non-gps vehicles would be to have a monthly/weekly subscription for an estimated number of kms, then verification tied in with WoF checks.
Phone/web app.
Subscription based, with the ability to input “actual readings” whenever you want, with a cross check at WoF time.
Could also make it GPS enabled, but that would have major privacy and accuracy concerns.
The current system with ordering them online is good, but could be much better. Also remove the need to display your km ticket for light vehicles.
Ah yes I am seeing how this could work. Sign people up, start charging them based on the average mileage. Let them enter their actuals through an app/website. At WOF time, verify actual usage. And you could adjust the auto-charging based on actual usage (e.g. if they only travelled 5,000km last year, this year you split it to that amount - a bit like how provisional tax works for income tax).
Also remove the need to display your km ticket for light vehicles.
That’s on their list which is good.
The current system with ordering them online is good, but could be much better.
I had no idea when I was supposed to order another label until someone on here told me one of the numbers on the label was the end number and you compare with your odo. But if we don’t have windscreen labels then that’s not even going to work.
I want a system where I don’t have to think about it (like petrol tax).
It is easy once you are used to it.
But so many ways to make it easier.
I mean there are hundreds of thousands of people across the country handling RUC fine, so I guess it can’t be that bad, but it definitely feels like it could be improved.
It’s mildly annoying to have to remember to go buy them and the slightly unnerving when you realise you’ve gone over. I’ve never got pulled up on being over and I was unwhittingly driving around for ~3 months that way.
In rural towns I’d say enforcement is passive in that they mainly rely on vehicle sales and other events to trigger re-ups. It is weird how many diesels have broken ODOs compared to petrol cars. 🤔
Yeah that makes sense. Maybe something that operates a bit like provisional tax, estimating based on the previous year.
@BaconWrappedEnigma , I think that overall a large portion of petrol driven cars will pay quite a bit more - the reason is that a huge amount of newer cars were bought because they consumed up to half the amount that older ones did, the huge number of small, fuel friendly cars on the road atm shows this trend - so it will be a win for the tax man.
I can see that this will result in less kms driven (a good thing for the environment where it involves petrol cars), this in turn will also mean less weekend outings, less holidays further afield, and in clear text another knockout for the industry depending on it and for business in general - I hope I’m not going to be right.Weekend trips would contribute to the velocity of money in the economy. It’s a bit hidden in your message. Are you saying we should:
- Tax the things that are bad for the economy
- Incentivise the things that are good for the economy
Are you also saying that this change would:
- Disconnect incentives from fuel economy / vehicle efficiency
- Unfairly punish people that made choices under the previous rules
- Remove a tax from “something bad” for our economy (importing petrol)
- Add a tax for “something good” for the economy (travel/shipping/deliveries)
I don’t want to put words in your mouth. Am I reading too much into your comment? 🙂
@BaconWrappedEnigma , yes.
It’s another thumb screw to squeeze ever more taxes from those who can barely/not afford it anymore.
An ill thought through action from a government we already know gives a damn about the environment and generally looks after the top of society and contrary to their statements cares neither for general business either.
Good solutions should take all these issues into account and find a way that serves the people.
I predict everyone is going to pay more as the revenue collection will be farmed out to private industry who will all not collude, but charge exactly the same fees.
As a recent EV and diesel owner, the current RUC system is dog shit.
But I’m not sure how they’re going to make it any better.
Allowing it to be post-paid when you do your WoF would just lead to a massive bill every year unless you stayed on top of it.
But what bills are the ones you don’t pay when you’re hard up? The optional ones. So that would stil impact the poorest despite “being fair”.
Unless they allow you to pay outstanding RUCs over the year, but I doubt that.
And neither of these options sound likely. The calls to “enable innovation” just sounds like a way to tack corporate fees onto a national tax.
