Drivers are hit with far more than their fair share of tax. A report by the TaxPayers Alliance in January 2011 (pdf) found drivers pay £18 billion a year more than they should!
There are so many taxes imposed upon drivers that it is easy to overlook some of them. Some are more obvious than others. Some are so much in the background it's easy to forget they exist — did your insurance company tell you how much tax you paid on your last premium?
Sub-Topics
- Fuel Tax
By far the largest tax on drivers. An extortionate rate of tax is charged on fuel, one of the highest in the world, and they even have the audacity to demand VAT on the fuel tax! Nothing less than a sea change in government policy is needed.
- Vehicle Excise Duty
An unnecessary bureaucracy that the ABD believes should be abolished.
- Parking
Many unscrupulous local authorities abuse parking as a means of raising local taxes, both through charges and fines. This is despite the law supposedly specifically prohibiting them from profiting from such charges.
- Road Tolls
Some tolls on bridges and tunnels continue to be demanded long after the construction cost of the bridge or tunnel has been paid for. In Scotland, the government has recognised the damage tolls do to the economy and scrapped all of them. Not so in England & Wales.
- Congestion Charging
A misnomer that is in reality just a tax on driving into London (and some pityful little scheme on a cul-de-sac in Durham).
- Speed Cameras
Speed cameras have been used as a form of taxation to raise millions from drivers. Originally this money went to speed camera partnerships; later it went straight to central government. Now some of speed cameras are being used to line the pockets of private companies running 'speed awareness courses'.
- Workplace Parking
Another stealth tax planned for Nottingham.
- First Registration Fee
Another petty little stealth tax.
- VAT on cars, spare parts, labour, car accessories
- Company Car Tax
- Insurance Premium Tax
And remember, all these are on top of income tax and the plethora of other stealth taxes everyone has to pay.
Why are there so many different taxes?
It's easy — the government want to make it a hard as possible for people to work out just how much total tax they pay each year. There'd be riots in the streets if people were aware of the truth.
Taxation of Wheels from Cradle to Grave
ABD Press Releases about Tax