Used car owners set to be ‘caught out’ by new £410 car tax rise

Motorists with the could be “caught out” with staggering from April, according to experts. 

Those buying second-hand cars priced over £40,000 could be at

This is an extra annual charge slapped onto the total bills of some of the most expensive cars on the road

regardless of who owns the vehicle meaning those securing almost new models second-hand will be affected. 

However, used car experts at claimed used car buyers may struggle to find whether their model car is liable for the charge.

This means individuals may believe they don’t owe the fee only to find they are slapped with higher charges at renewal.

Parkers said: “It’s even easier to get caught out when buying a used car. That’s because it’s often not clear what a car cost when it was new, especially as the £40,000 threshold takes the price of any optional extras into account. 

“And most online car tax calculators don’t indicate if a particular car will incur the extra charge. 

“Often the only way to find out is by starting the process of paying for road tax on the government’s website.”

The ECS charge sits at £410 and is paid on top of motorists’ existing charges. 

However, more cars than ever before will pay the ECS fee from April under widespread updates. 

Brand new petrol and diesel models have been paying the fee for years but will be charged the rate for the first time this Spring.

However, there is some concern that electric models could be unfairly affected by a £40,000 threshold for an ECS charge.

The costly upfront rate of electric models means almost all mid-sized models fall above the threshold meaning families could be affected. 

Experts at previously warned the current level “does not reflect” the most expensive electric models. 

They said: “​This is in addition to the standard VED rates. Industry experts argue that the £40,000 threshold does not reflect luxury for EVs due to their generally higher costs than petrol or diesel cars.”