Rachel Reeves has been called out for “going after” families with many ordinary petrol and diesel cars set to pay as much as £760 to use the roads from April. Grant Davidson, Managing Director of TikTok channel @ScottishCarClan warned "nothing is safe” from car tax hikes this spring, with popular family estate, saloon and SUV models in the firing line.
Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) prices rise with inflation every April with the most polluting petrol and diesel cars most affected. Models registered between 2001 and 2017 pay fees based solely on vehicle emissions, with those emitting over 255g/km set to pay £790 per year.
However, cars emitting between 226 and 255g/k of CO2 are also set for hikes, with bills rising from £735 to £760 from April 1.
Grant said: “Here’s [some] of the regular everyday family cars that are set to cost £760 to tax this April. First up is the Ford Galaxy with the 2.3 litre petrol engine. Everyone assumes these massive tax prices are going to be applied only to Lamborghinis and Bentley’s, but that's not the case, they are going after cars like this.
“Next is the humble Ford Mondeo, nothing is safe here. If it’s one of the smaller engine ones, you might be okay, but if it's the V6 version, god forbid you want a bit of power in your car, then you’re going to be £760 for a Ford Mondeo. It isn't just a larger engines either, you know the little Audi TT with the 1.8 turbo engine, specifically the ones made in 2006. You guessed it, are going to be 760 to tax for one calendar year.”
Motorists must have valid road tax to legally drive on the road, with individuals facing fines if they get behind the wheel without it. Prices are up across the board, with standard and first-year fees rising for cars registered after 2017.
Models registered before 2001 are also facing new rises with bills based on vehicle engine size. However, the cars set to pay £760 didn't stop there, with Grant listing off three more popular models, including a couple of SUVs.
“How about a Jaguar X Type, you can pick these up from a couple of thousands of pounds, nice smooth two litre engine, automatic gearbox, however, from April, you guessed it, you're going to need £760 to tax one of these.
“How about all-wheel drive cars which some of us leave, both the Freelander Two with the i6 engine and the Subaru Forester will both be £760 from April onwards."
