Car tax check – Find out how much you need to pay now and when it’s due

06/30/2019

Earlier this year, car tax rates increased for millions of motorists in Britain. The increase to car tax came after an announcement from Chancellor Philip Hammond in the Autumn Budget. Hammond’s statement said: “From April 1, 2019, VED rates for cars, vans, and motorcycles will increase in line with RPI. As a result of the change, car tax rates increased by up to £65 for some motorists in Britain. Vehicles registered between 1st March 2001 and 1st March 2017 will see a maximum of £15 increase and cars registered after April 1st, 2019 will pay up to £65 more. Drivers who face the highest price increase are those who drive the most polluting cars on the road which produce over 255g/km of CO2. The majority of UK drivers faced a £5 increase.

The VED g/km increases have now been revealed and are as follows:

76g/km and 150g/km CO2: +£5
151-170g/km CO2: +£15
171-190g/km CO2: +£25
191-225g/km CO2: +£40
226-255g/km CO2: +£55
255g/km CO2: +£65

Car tax rates have changed several times over the past few years, which could be confusing motorists.

There is a way you can check your vehicle tax rates online and how much you can be expected to pay.

To check how much car tax you need to pay then you can use the tool on the VCA (Vehicle Certification Agency) website.

Under the ‘Car fuel data, CO2 and vehicle tax tools’ you need to click on the ‘Find vehicle tax information on a new or used car’ section.

You can then cycle through a number of pages to determine which vehicle you have and when it was registered which should give you an accurate VED figure.

Motorists can be fined a minimum of £80 for failing to have valid car tax. However, this car increase to £1,000 if you’re caught by the police or if your case goes to court.

Alongside the updates to car tax rates today the second year rates and luxury car tax charges changed too.

The luxury car tax surcharge increased to £320 – a £10 increase – and second and subsequent year rates jumped up by £5 to £145 for petrol and diesel and £135 for hybrid cars.

The car tax system changed in 2017 with rates increasing significantly adding up to hundreds on top of their bill.