This week I have renewed my car tax having successfully got the vehicle through its MOT test. Nothing too remarkable about the tax renewal so why comment about it you may well ask. Actually it's the card I had from the DVLA, a day or two before the expiry date, that I want to write about.
Now it's pretty self evident that DVLA are doing everything they can to get those wanting to renew their car tax to go directly to them by using the phone or the internet. The reason quite simply has to be that it is the most cost effective option for them. All well and good in one sense I guess in that it is our money that funds the DVLA and we should be pleased if they can cut costs. But, and it's a very big BUT, the more we go direct to them the less business there is for the Post Office! In my case the village Post Office is not much more than five minutes away, it deserves to be used and the couple who run it are exceptionally likable. As usual then it was the Post Office route I took to make my car legal to drive.
Back to the card I had from the DVLA. This was to inform me that I had an extra five working days to sort the tax; I think that the regulations have been amended to take account of the fact that they just can't get all the tax discs instantly back to their customers at the end of the month! They also drew one's attention again to their free prize draw giving you the chance to win a brand new car! Not a BMW or Jaguar by the way but a more modest model - a SEAT. Evidently the idea is to encourage you to go to their website and, oh while you there, why not renew your tax on line! Having as I said dealt with my tax up the road my curiosity was aroused enough to look at the website and then I saw that the free draw is open to all i.e. no purchase necessary. Thinking about this now I guess that it's a legal requirement that there should be no restriction on participating in the draw. I'm really getting to the point of this post now: is it ethical for the Government to allow one of its agencies to use the carrot of possibly winning a free car to draw people away from using the Post Office in order to to renew their car tax.
I think it is an interesting point to raise and just what a back bench MP should be asking Gordon Brown at PMQs!
Showing posts with label car tax. Show all posts
Showing posts with label car tax. Show all posts
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Cameron mauls Brown on VED
Vehicle Excise Duty (or VED but perhaps better known as car tax to you and me) is a subject I've been wanting to comment on. Not so much VED itself but the government plan to hugely increase the rates for the more polluting cars made since 2001. I happened to see PMQs from the House of Commons last Wednesday lunchtime and Cameron majored on this particular subject in his six questions to the Prime Minister.
My car came off the production line a long time before that particular year, so I'm not affected by these exorbitant increases and therefore don't have a personal axe to grind. However, and I'm not going to mince my words here, Labour's decision to effectively backdate this tax increase is totally immoral. The government are also going to raise the level of VED on those cars yet to be built if they are particularly polluting. This at least has the merit of pushing both manufacturers and customers in what is perceived to be a good environmental direction. But picking on certain car owners whose vehicles are up to seven years old is absolutely grotesque. At the moment it looks as if Labour might have to eventually make yet another U-turn as their backbenchers and supporters get fidgety on this subject.
It is inherently unfair to 'backdate' this tax because purchasers of these cars would not have known that they would face these swingeing increases in costs. But let's put issues of principle aside for just a moment and look at other aspects of this sorry saga. As with the 10p tax fiasco Labour are in danger of alienating their natural supporters many of whom will already own one of these alleged polluting cars. One thing that makes me hot under the collar is the fact that nobody, well certainly not politicians, ever talks about the pollution caused by the manufacture and eventual scrapping of a motor car, it's always about the pollution produced when they are driven. If there is anything that irks me it is the presentation by people who should know better of only half the story. Now even if older cars are more polluting when in use than newer models surely it makes sense to not shorten their life. But reducing their lifespan seems to be exactly what these idiot decision makers are intent on doing. With the retrospective increases in VED then there will be a rapid acceleration in the time when the residual value of the car approaches the amount that has to be paid each year in car tax. This will seriously skew the second hand market and make it very difficult to sell certain perfectly serviceable but more polluting cars up to seven years old (actually up to 8 years old because the increases start in 2009) and lead to premature scrapping of them.
I really don't know what they put in the water in Westminster but as with the 10p tax business the government are showing unbelievably bad judgment and terrible incompetence. No wonder Cameron was having a field day at Brown's expense. By the way why was Brown calling VED VAD I wonder. He just doesn't seem to be in control at the moment.
My car came off the production line a long time before that particular year, so I'm not affected by these exorbitant increases and therefore don't have a personal axe to grind. However, and I'm not going to mince my words here, Labour's decision to effectively backdate this tax increase is totally immoral. The government are also going to raise the level of VED on those cars yet to be built if they are particularly polluting. This at least has the merit of pushing both manufacturers and customers in what is perceived to be a good environmental direction. But picking on certain car owners whose vehicles are up to seven years old is absolutely grotesque. At the moment it looks as if Labour might have to eventually make yet another U-turn as their backbenchers and supporters get fidgety on this subject.
It is inherently unfair to 'backdate' this tax because purchasers of these cars would not have known that they would face these swingeing increases in costs. But let's put issues of principle aside for just a moment and look at other aspects of this sorry saga. As with the 10p tax fiasco Labour are in danger of alienating their natural supporters many of whom will already own one of these alleged polluting cars. One thing that makes me hot under the collar is the fact that nobody, well certainly not politicians, ever talks about the pollution caused by the manufacture and eventual scrapping of a motor car, it's always about the pollution produced when they are driven. If there is anything that irks me it is the presentation by people who should know better of only half the story. Now even if older cars are more polluting when in use than newer models surely it makes sense to not shorten their life. But reducing their lifespan seems to be exactly what these idiot decision makers are intent on doing. With the retrospective increases in VED then there will be a rapid acceleration in the time when the residual value of the car approaches the amount that has to be paid each year in car tax. This will seriously skew the second hand market and make it very difficult to sell certain perfectly serviceable but more polluting cars up to seven years old (actually up to 8 years old because the increases start in 2009) and lead to premature scrapping of them.
I really don't know what they put in the water in Westminster but as with the 10p tax business the government are showing unbelievably bad judgment and terrible incompetence. No wonder Cameron was having a field day at Brown's expense. By the way why was Brown calling VED VAD I wonder. He just doesn't seem to be in control at the moment.
Labels:
car tax,
Gordon Brown
Wednesday, 13 December 2006
Bishops speak out over Post Office closures
Well tomorrow the government should be making an announcement about the future of post offices. I am heartened to read that the Bishop of Exeter, the Rt Rev Michael Langrish, and the Bishop of Truro, the Rt Rev Bill Ind, have both spoken out about, as they see it, the wrongful policy of closing post offices particularly in the rural areas of Devon and Cornwall. I cannot describe myself as a practising (i.e. churchgoing) Christian but I have the greatest respect for those two men. Why? Well apart from anything else they understand how villages and small towns work. One of my biggest complaints about urbancentric labour politicians is their lack of perception about life in the countryside and what living in very small communities is all about. Add that to the fact that so many of them have never had real jobs and it can be seen that there are problems in getting these people to understand our concerns.
Yes there is a lower footfall in many of our post offices but much of that is down to cynical policies by this government. And I would agree that renewing a licence online for example has to be cheaper for the government than using your local friendly post office. But as usual the powers that be have no concern about the social cost. And if we are to reduce our carbon footprint isn't it better to have a post office facility in your own village rather than travelling by car orhaving to use a poor bus service?
Interesting point about car tax renewal: on line I am expected to pay my dues at least 5 days before the end of the month so there is time for DVLA to process the application and post the tax disc in time for the start of the month. Going to the post office, as I do, means effectively I can delay payment by these 5 days. Incidentally you can use a credit card on line but you have to pay an extra £2.50 for the privilege. Not a good deal for the motorist! A further point - on the leaflet that came with my tax disc reminder, in describing the new electronic system they used the phrase "What's the easiest way to renew my tax disc?" In other words they were suggesting this way as opposed to using the PO. Oh, and I almost forgot you can renew over the phone using an 0870 number which again costs.
Yes there is a lower footfall in many of our post offices but much of that is down to cynical policies by this government. And I would agree that renewing a licence online for example has to be cheaper for the government than using your local friendly post office. But as usual the powers that be have no concern about the social cost. And if we are to reduce our carbon footprint isn't it better to have a post office facility in your own village rather than travelling by car orhaving to use a poor bus service?
Interesting point about car tax renewal: on line I am expected to pay my dues at least 5 days before the end of the month so there is time for DVLA to process the application and post the tax disc in time for the start of the month. Going to the post office, as I do, means effectively I can delay payment by these 5 days. Incidentally you can use a credit card on line but you have to pay an extra £2.50 for the privilege. Not a good deal for the motorist! A further point - on the leaflet that came with my tax disc reminder, in describing the new electronic system they used the phrase "What's the easiest way to renew my tax disc?" In other words they were suggesting this way as opposed to using the PO. Oh, and I almost forgot you can renew over the phone using an 0870 number which again costs.
Labels:
bishops,
car tax,
Post Office
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