Archived press release

Survey shows british road tax favours gas guzzlers

16 February 1998

Drivers of small, fuel efficient cars pay more road tax (vehicle excise duty) in Britain than in Belgium, Germany or Ireland reveals a survey published today by Friends of the Earth,yet drivers of gas-guzzling monsters pay less.

Britain is the only country in Europe in which you pay the same road tax if you drive the most fuel efficient car on the road - the Suzuki Swift - as you do if you drive the least fuel efficient - the Ferrari F50.

Friends of the Earth's survey compared road tax rates for these models, Britain's most popular car and Britain's most popular company car, in the UK and in neighbouring countries [1].

It found that, if you drive a Suzuki Swift in Ireland, Belgium or Germany, you pay just over or less than half the annual road tax that you pay if you drive it in Britain. However, if you drive a Ferrari F50, you pay 30% more road tax in Germany, four and a half times as much road tax in Ireland and over seven times as much road tax in Belgium.

Altogether, you have to pay sixteen times as much road tax in Belgium, eight times as much in Ireland and four times as much in Germany to drive a Ferrari F50 as you have to pay to drive a Suzuki Swift. Furthermore, in Belgium and Ireland you also have to pay a far higher registration tax just to buy a large car than you do if you buy a small one [2].

Roger Higman, Friends of the Earth's Senior Transport Campaigner said:

“Britain's flat rate road tax is a joke. In no other country in Europe would you be charged the same amount to run a small fuel efficient car as to run a gas-guzzlingmonster. It is high time, the Chancellor abolished the system in favour of one that rewards drivers of cleaner,more efficient cars and penalises drivers of wasteful gross polluters”.

Friends of the Earth is lobbying the Chancellor to abolish the flat rate road tax system, as part of a package of tax changes to encourage greener lifestyles. This would also include a general increase in the price of petrol and diesel and greater spending on public transport,cycling and walking [3].

NOTES TO EDITORS:

[1] Friends of the Earth calculated how much road tax (vehicle excise duty) you would pay if you ran one of four models in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Belgium - our nearest neighbours - based on information from the Governments concerned. Holland and France were excluded from the survey because the amount of road tax paid varies from one part of the country to another.

The road tax rates for the four models in the four countries are compared below:

MODEL	UK	BELGIUM	GERMANY	IRELAND
Suzuki Swift	£145.00	£65.82	£40.51	£77.90
Ford Fiesta	£145.00	£86.10	£52.67	£138.02
Ford Mondeo	£145.00	£146.74	£72.92	£257.41
Ferrari F50	£145.00	£1082.62	£190.41	£677.39

Details of the models chosen are as follows:

MOST FUEL-EFFICIENT PETROL CAR IN BRITAIN
according to Vehicle Certification Agency data)
SUZUKI SWIFT 1.0 GL/GLS/GLX
Engine size:1000cc
Fuel consumption51.4mpg (5.5 litres/100km)

BEST SELLING CAR IN BRITAIN
(according to Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders)
FORD FIESTA 1.3 EFi
Engine size:1300cc
Fuel consumption:41.5mpg(6.8 litres/100km)

BEST SELLING FLEET CAR IN BRITAIN
(According to Fleet Car magazine)
FORD MONDEO 1.8i 16v
Engine size:1800cc
Fuel consumption:34mpg(8.3 litres/100km)

LEAST FUEL EFFICIENT CAR IN BRITAIN
(according to Vehicle Certification Agency data)
FERRARI F50
Engine size:4600cc
Fuel consumption:10.6mpg(26.5 litres/100km)

[2] Britain no longer charges a tax on the purchase or registration of a new car. Neither does Germany. However many other European countries, including Belgium and Ireland, do. In most cases the amount charged is related to the size or the cost of the new vehicle. This also acts as an incentive to buy a smaller, more efficient car.

Registration taxes in the four countries for the four models are as follows:

MODEL	UK	BELGIUM	GERMANY	IRELAND
Suzuki Swift	-	£40.87	-	23.2% of value
Ford Fiesta	-	£40.87	-	23.2% of value
Ford Mondeo	-	£81.74	-	23.2% of value
Ferrari F50	-	£3269.58	-	29.25% of value

[3] something about what the Chancellor has said in the past; what else FOE is lobbying for etc.

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust