6 August 2008
Recent changes to vehicle excise duty (VED) are right in principle, but the government must do more to help those adversely affected, it has been claimed. According to the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC), it is right that owners of higher polluting cars pay more road tax than motorists driving fuel efficient models. It also claims there is "nothing intrinsically unfair" about setting the new VED rates to apply to cars that have already been purchased. However, it points out that since rates will more than double for some vehicles registered between 2001 and 2006, measures must be put in place to ensure drivers of these cars do not take a financial hit by switching to something more environmentally-friendly. "This includes looking at paying people to trade in their existing high emissions cars for more efficient models and reviewing whether all disabled drivers could be exempted from paying car tax," said the EAC's Chairman Tim Yeo. He also said the government must offer greater discounts and rebates on low emission vehicles to encourage their take up in the market. Many car insurance companies already reward owners of greener cars with lower premiums. Research from the insurer esure reveals that 71% of British motorists would consider driving an electric car.