Tax for older cars going up?
Tax for older cars going up?
Author
Discussion

ingenieur

Original Poster:

4,653 posts

211 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Seems like they're backdating the emissions nonsense to cover cars made between 2001-2005 when previously they were only taxed at the flat rate for up to 2000cc and over 2000cc.

Here's a table on the RAC website: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/buying-and-sell...

One of my cars is VED band M

It looks like for that car I will go from £415 to £735 - a 77% increase.

Is this correct? Are they targeting cars made between 2001 and 2005 especially? It's as if the tax rise has been made for me specifically.


WelshPetrolhead

1,021 posts

165 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
It's always been emissions based from 2001 AFAIK

If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April. Bands L and M came in after that date.

ingenieur

Original Poster:

4,653 posts

211 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
WelshPetrolhead said:
If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April.
Is the RAC website wrong?

anonymous-user

84 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
WelshPetrolhead said:
It's always been emissions based from 2001 AFAIK

If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April. Bands L and M came in after that date.
What he said.

The Rotrex Kid

34,964 posts

190 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
WelshPetrolhead said:
If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April.
Is the RAC website wrong?
In short. Yes.

Wrong by omission of an asterix and a brief explanation of the above.

WelshPetrolhead

1,021 posts

165 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
Is the RAC website wrong?
I am not suggesting it is wrong, however they don't appear to have mentioned the exception with band L and M.

The most trustworthy source is the government site, which unfortunately hasn't updated for 2025 yet, but does point out the info regarding L and M.

https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax-rate-tables/rates-f...

I haven't seen anything about the exception regarding March 2006 being removed.

Edited by WelshPetrolhead on Tuesday 4th March 20:09

Missy Charm

1,525 posts

58 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
Seems like they're backdating the emissions nonsense to cover cars made between 2001-2005 when previously they were only taxed at the flat rate for up to 2000cc and over 2000cc.

Here's a table on the RAC website: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/buying-and-sell...

One of my cars is VED band M

It looks like for that car I will go from £415 to £735 - a 77% increase.

Is this correct? Are they targeting cars made between 2001 and 2005 especially? It's as if the tax rise has been made for me specifically.
Calm down, dear, it's only a badly written article that you've misinterpreted. Emissions-based taxation has been in place since 2001, so you'll have been paying road tax based on that model since then - or whenever you bought the car.

The last budget did result in an increase to VED payable in most bands of the 2001-2017 system. If your car was costing £415 per annum, it'll be Band K. As of the new financial year, annual duty on a Band K car will be £430 - a massive hike of, erm, £15.

ingenieur

Original Poster:

4,653 posts

211 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
The Rotrex Kid said:
ingenieur said:
WelshPetrolhead said:
If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April.
Is the RAC website wrong?
In short. Yes.

Wrong by omission of an asterix and a brief explanation of the above.
Okay, so the asterix is there on the HMRC website but does the fact it is missing from the RAC website show that a change is coming as HMRC are quoting the current rates?

lufbramatt

5,686 posts

164 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Every year these articles forget the asterisk and everyone panics ;-)

ingenieur

Original Poster:

4,653 posts

211 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Missy Charm said:
ingenieur said:
Seems like they're backdating the emissions nonsense to cover cars made between 2001-2005 when previously they were only taxed at the flat rate for up to 2000cc and over 2000cc.

Here's a table on the RAC website: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/buying-and-sell...

One of my cars is VED band M

It looks like for that car I will go from £415 to £735 - a 77% increase.

Is this correct? Are they targeting cars made between 2001 and 2005 especially? It's as if the tax rise has been made for me specifically.
Calm down, dear, it's only a badly written article that you've misinterpreted. Emissions-based taxation has been in place since 2001, so you'll have been paying road tax based on that model since then - or whenever you bought the car.

The last budget did result in an increase to VED payable in most bands of the 2001-2017 system. If your car was costing £415 per annum, it'll be Band K. As of the new financial year, annual duty on a Band K car will be £430 - a massive hike of, erm, £15.
It's one of those things where you don't pay attention if they're being fair / leaving you alone so not worth giving any thinking time to. According to the table on the RAC website the car in question is in band M. But the .gov website says there is a special exemption _at_the_moment_

If that's not being changed and the RAC website is wrong then no problem... breath out.

WelshPetrolhead

1,021 posts

165 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
Okay, so the asterix is there on the HMRC website but does the fact it is missing from the RAC website show that a change is coming as HMRC are quoting the current rates?
Well the RAC has noted the change for cars A going into B, so I would suggest if anything else was changing they would have mentioned it. I can't find anything about L and M being backdated from 2006 to 2001.

I would be paying attention to this also as I have a 2004 car in K which if rebanded would also be in M!

Gerradi

2,058 posts

150 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Missy Charm said:
Calm down, dear, it's only a badly written article that you've misinterpreted. Emissions-based taxation has been in place since 2001, so you'll have been paying road tax based on that model since then - or whenever you bought the car.

The last budget did result in an increase to VED payable in most bands of the 2001-2017 system. If your car was costing £415 per annum, it'll be Band K. As of the new financial year, annual duty on a Band K car will be £430 - a massive hike of, erm, £15.
Crowd Fund?

g7jhp

7,034 posts

268 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Just for your peace of mind. The Which website covers all the new changes for 2025 including....

"Band K includes cars that have a CO2 figure of more than 225g/km but were registered before 23 March 2006. Annual rate after the first year assumes single payment for the whole year. You can choose to set up a direct debit to pay monthly, or pay a single payment every six months. If you choose either of these options, you will pay more compared with a single payment for 12 months."

So these only rise from £415p/a to £430p/a.

https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/new-and-used-cars/...

sutts

1,125 posts

178 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
Luckily (not really) for me my 2.4 petrol V70 was registered on 29th March 2006. One week earlier and I would be paying £330 a year less tax…

Mr Tidy

31,561 posts

157 months

Tuesday 4th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
The Rotrex Kid said:
ingenieur said:
WelshPetrolhead said:
If your car is registered before 23rd March 2006 then its in band K and will be £430 from April.
Is the RAC website wrong?
In short. Yes.

Wrong by omission of an asterix and a brief explanation of the above.
Okay, so the asterix is there on the HMRC website but does the fact it is missing from the RAC website show that a change is coming as HMRC are quoting the current rates?
No, it just means the RAC didn't include the asterix!

And the explanation for Band L and Band M cars registered before 23 March 2006 that goes with it.

A very sore point for me as my Band M car was registered in December 2006, so a year cost me £735 on Saturday. cry

Master Bean

5,227 posts

150 months

Wednesday 5th March 2025
quotequote all
The engine size was up to 1.55 litres so my 1.6 Caterham was in the higher bracket. Balls.

droopsnoot

14,697 posts

272 months

Wednesday 5th March 2025
quotequote all
ingenieur said:
Okay, so the asterix is there on the HMRC website but does the fact it is missing from the RAC website show that a change is coming as HMRC are quoting the current rates?
HMRC sites only talk about the current situation. The page talking about VED exemption for classic cars, for example, talks about the cut-off date for eligibility, but doesn't mention (or didn't, last time I looked) that it will change on April 1st.