Pay-per-mile car tax fees “could expand to every” driver in the UK, according to a leading motoring expert. The Government confirmed the introduction of pay-per-mile fees for electric vehicles from 2028 in the Autumn Budget.
The new electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED) fee will charge EVs 3p per mile to use the roads, with plug-in hybrid models forced to pay 1.5p per mile. The new fee is being introduced to offset the loss of petrol and diesel fuel duty with revenues declining as more motorists switch to electric models.
However, motoring journalist and YouTuber Shahzad Sheikh, founder and presenter of channel @BrownCarGuy, claims this could just be the start. He has tipped the Government to eventually extend a mileage road tax system to impact other road users which may mean petrol and diesel drivers won’t be safe for long.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Shahzad said: “Pay-per-mile is the replacement for [fuel duty]. It’s not a temporary measure, it's not a trial, it is a structural shift. Believe you me I think it will expand to everyone else as well soon.
"In pure Treasury terms, mileage is attractive, it is protectable, it scales with population, it never disappears. Unlike fuel duty which fades as cars become more efficient or [drivers] move to electric or hybrid.”
Petrol and diesel owners are paying around 5p per mile in fuel duty costs, meaning the new 3p EV rate is still more affordable. According to the Department for Transport, around one in five car drivers are expected to pay no fuel duty at all by the end of the decade if no action is taken.
They suggested that combustion drivers will continue paying an average of £480 per year, branding this position as “not a fair outcome”.
However, the move has still been met with controversy, with experts concerned that the new rate could lead to a decline in interest for electric vehicles.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) were among the leading voices criticising the move, describing the plan as the “wrong measure”.
Express.co.uk has contacted the Department for Transport (DfT) for comment.