As you might have heard, from 1 October you’ll no longer have to display a tax disc in your windscreen under new cost-cutting government plans.
Although a fairly minor consideration, the abolition of the tax disc is part of a wider-ranging raft of road tax reforms. And road safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) claims that many drivers are not prepared for the changes.
Essentially, you’ll still have to tax your car and the method of paying for your road tax remains unchanged; however, you’ll also now be able to pay your tax by direct debit.
The big change, however, is when you come to sell or buy a vehicle. In the past, the road tax would simply transfer to the new owner when a car was sold; but now the previous owner will have to cash in the tax before they sell the car and the new owner will have to buy vehicle tax when they buy the car.
Simon Best, IAM chief executive, said: “As with all new systems, it will take a little time to get used to. But the move to allow people to set up a direct debit will mean greater peace of mind for many, so your vehicle will never be untaxed.
“However, moving more of these processes online will make things very difficult for those without regular internet access – as ever, the poor and elderly could lose out.
“And it will be interesting to see if some people think that without a visible tax disc it will be easier simply not to buy one. We’ll see in time how effective this has been in catching those who avoid paying.”
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