The British had a change of heart - tax-privileged classic cars
03/25/2014
The British have known about tax benefits for classic cars for quite some time. However, the rules have changed time and again. In 1997, for example, Tony Blair abolished the tax concession for classic cars that were at least 25 years old and replaced it with a regulation that exempted vehicles that were first registered on the roads before April 1, 1973 from road tax.
This regulation has now been changed so that vehicles at least 40 years old benefit from the abolition of the "road tax" (motor vehicle tax). Unlike in Germany and Switzerland, it is the year of construction and not the initial registration that is decisive here. The British also went their own way with the number 40, as the magic number in this country is 30.
Cars such as an Austin Allegro or next year's early Triumph TR 7 will now also benefit from the change in legislation.
In terms of the polluter-pays principle, it sounds sensible to exempt classic cars from road tax, as they rarely drive on public roads and are probably rarely involved in traffic jams. Unfortunately, we are not quite as far along in this country as the British. Although Germany has the H license plate and Switzerland the veteran registration with some advantages over the "normal case", complete tax relief would still be a fine thing. So, dear interest groups, there is still a lot to do, let's get on with it ....
