The RAC Foundation has released a report calling for 18 year old cars to be scrapped and replaced with newer, more fuel efficient models. The report, ‘Car Ownership in Great Britain’, recommends a mass cull of 17-18 year old cars with a financial pay off to encourage owners to buy newer, more efficient cars.
Rejecting the Government’s idea of higher taxes or more regular inspections on older, thirstier cars, the RAC Foundation has recognised that the majority of ‘older car’ owners are on a low income – so taxing them out of their cars would be unfair. The Foundation believes that a well implemented scheme will benefit the used and new car industries, while also keeping roads ‘greener’.
RAC Foundation Director Stephen Glaister said: ‘Making it affordable for motorists to scrap clapped-out cars and opt instead for a cleaner, more fuel-efficient and more reliable vehicle could be a way for the Government to support greener motoring. This is an essential ingredient of a proper "dust-to-dust" emissions assessment.’
In layman’s terms – scrap your old car for more money than it’s worth and get a greener one, thereby saving the world one rust bucket at a time.
Glaister added: ‘Motorists can't afford to be on the receiving end of another muddled, poorly thought out scheme like the VED proposals unveiled in March. Any scrappage scheme should be further researched before implementation in order to benefit the environment, motorists and manufacturers, without distorting the market.’
The report also found that when a car is sold or scrapped it is usually replaced with one a few years younger. This, they say, should be the thing to give the new and used markets a boost, as there will be almost constant change over.
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