Hit Hard By The New 4x4 Car Tax!!!

shelovestobuystuff

MY HUBBY JUST GOT NOTIFICATION OF HIS NEW TAX CODE FOR NEXT YEAR.:mad:
WE WERE IN TROUBLE ALREADY BUT THIS IS A SEVERE BLOW TO THE FINANCES.
THE NEW 4X4 CAR TAX CODES MEAN THAT HIS TAX FREE INCOME ALLOWANCE IS TO BE REDUCED BY£3,000 AND ANOTHER ADDITIONAL £500 BECAUSE HIS EMPLOYER PAYS FOR THE PETROL.WE CANT AFFORD TO PAY TAX ON ANOTHER £3,500 A YEAR:eek:WE NOW AS A FAMILY OF 4 ONLY GET JUST OVER £1,000 TAX FREE IN THE YEAR.
WE ARE NOT WELL OFF AND THE 4X4 IS A WORKS VEHICLE NOT OUR OWN.HIS WORK INVOLVES DRIVING AROUND BUILDING SITES SO AN ORDINARY LITTLE VAN WOULD GET STUCK IN THE MUD, HE NEEDS THE 4X4.
ANY TIPS ON COMPANY CAR TAX WOULD BE GREAT AS I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED BY THIS ONE.

shelovestobuystuff

Apart from the fact that this tax is hitting us where it hurts it is also one that I dont see the point of at all.It is supposed to be to help the environment, but how???I think it is just another way of emptying the pay packets of those whom the government see as middle wage earners who can afford a bit more.Not true in this case and probably not true for loads of others who are going to be saddled with this.Even if I could see where the tax helped the environment I still wouldnt be happy about it.Who would???

Andy_L

Stop using the car for personal use & stop being taxed on it - problem solved.

PS it's a lot easier to read your message if you don't use all capitals

exil

I second that. The tax is on a benefit you are assumed to be getting - ie free use of a car - which is a valuable benefit in anyone's book considering how expensive it is to run any car, never mind a 4x4.

Now if you're NOT getting any real benefit ie you don't use the car at weekends etc you're paying tax for nothing - in which case get rid of the car back to the employer, use own car to get to employer's main site.

On the political message - well, I have a bit of an issue with these huge 4x4s I have to admit. They're big, heavy, ugly, expensive to maintain and refuel,
impossible to park, besides the environmental impact. Can't see why anyone wants to buy one. In your case you've had a 4x4 foisted on you by your employer so I have more sympathy.

mustrum_ridcully

Simple get a FIAT Panda 4x4 if 4wd is really necessary or stop using the SUV for personal use.

shelovestobuystuff

The 4x4 is no use for personal use anyway,its only a 2 door vehicle,its got the usual 2 static seats and 2 fold down ones in the back, but the thing is always too full of work equipment to fold these down.It might be cheaper now to get a car ourselves or hire one on a monthly basis I suppose.As it is whenever we have to go somewhere together as a family we have to hire a car for the day.I heard somewhere that if you dont have a base location of work i.e dont know where you will be sent from one day to the next, then you dont need to pay the company car tax yourself, the employer becomes liable for it.I need to find out if this is true too.Thanks for your comments.Oh and I have stopped using all capitals just for you Andy L.Just a bad habit.Thanks.

exil

Sounds like you shouldn't be paying company car tax at all. is there a tax accountant out there?

natanddan1

This is very interesting, if your other half travels to building sites then he does not have a perminant place of work. I think the rle is a perminant place of work is if you are at the same plcae for 2 or more years!!! might be wrong on that.

I have a company car that i use to travel to site (each site less than 18 months long) i use my own car (little sporty number) for personal use. Should i be paying tax on the company car?

shelovestobuystuff

I just checked out the details on company car tax on the government site and it looks like we are being asked to pay company car tax on a what is classed as a van?
A double cab pick up with 2 doors (which is what we have) is definately classed as a van.
The same with 4 doors can be a car or van depending on the construction weight of the vehicle, this is called the payload.
There is a "1 tonne rule" to determine whether it is a car or van.Basically, under 1 tonne its a car and over then its a van.
This is for vehicles with open backs,adding a hard top cover to the open back area can change its classification from a van to a car but only if its manufactured weight without additions is within the 1 tonne rule.
The government site suggests checking the vehicle manual or contacting the manufacturer for precise payload and classification details as they will have exact details of all this info for their vehicles.
Looks like a phone call to the tax man is in order!
Thanks natanddan 1 for your comments on permanent place of work.I must check this out urgently too.

Cumbrian_Male

I also believe you can have a car derived van if there are no side windows behind the doors.

You see lots of 2 door discoverys up here with steel panels were the windows would be.

shelovestobuystuff

Well, I phoned my local tax office and the man I spoke to agrees that under current tax rules we are not liable for car tax, the vehicle we have just now is or rather should be classed as a van.BUT!!!He said, and I will check this out further, not going to take just one persons word on it,that from this April company VAN benefit is rocketing up from £500 to £3000 in line with company car tax anyway!!!
Aparantly to catch all those employers who buy vehicle types based on their tax rating thus trying to avoid tax.Well thats just good sense in my book, not tax avoidance!Anyway,its not the companies who pay it, its the employees!
Well now it looks like everyone driving a works van will be taxed on an extra £3500 of their income per year from April 2007.
I think we are just going to try to get the best vehicle we can out of hubbys employer now.One that we can actually use as a family car too if we are going to have to pay for it.