"Road Tax" - go on enlighten me

[Nortones2]

Of course its optional. You don't have to pay VED if you don't drive. So its quite incorrect to call it road tax. Its more correct to call it car tax, or truck tax or even vehicle excise duty

 

[Tetedelacourse]

If you can avoid it, don't ever give the person you're arguing with opportunity to portray your point as merely one of semantics. They're wrong, but they'll just write off your comments from then on. Win the argument first, and then present them with the 'its not road tax anyway' thing as a nail in their coffin; that point follows naturally from the point on emissions anyway.

Another good tip might be to try to avoid patronising the person you're arguing with.

 

[ufkacbln]

Winston Churchill campaigned against the introduction ofthis tax when it was first suggested.

He thought that such a tax would lead to some arrogant individuals claiming ownership ofthe roads that "their tax" had paid for, and is on record stating this.

A shrewd man and unequivacaly correct!

 

[Amanda P]

Perhaps the lighting response should be: "Yeah, actually I do pay road tax. I just left my Ferrari at home today".

This:

dispels the notion that you're cycling because you can't drive;
dispels the notion that you're cycling because you can't afford a car;
indicates that you pay just as much "road tax" as the motorist you're arguing with, but that you're cycling from choice, and
implies that you're in fact doing the motorist a favour by not using up the space your (presumably) fictional Ferrari would take up, and casts aspersions on the (presumably) non-Ferrari he or she is driving.

 

[Cab]

Another good tip might be to try to avoid patronising the person you're arguing with.

Hell no

Patronise them gently, it'll make them lose their rag and look ridiculous in front of others. You have to be quite subtle about it, but its well worth using such a tactic with motorists.

 

[bonj2]

Of course its optional. You don't have to pay VED if you don't drive. So its quite incorrect to call it road tax. Its more correct to call it car tax, or truck tax or even vehicle excise duty

It's more correct to call it road tax than car tax, because you don't pay it for owning a car, you pay it for keeping said car on the road.

 

[Tynan]

I use to hitch a lot, an HGV paid over £1400/year back then in the 80s and as such considered the cars wastrel scum with no right to be on the road

point that out to the car drivers

 

[bonj2]

I use to hitch a lot, an HGV paid over £1400/year back then in the 80s and as such considered the cars wastrel scum with no right to be on the road

point that out to the car drivers

oh, do shut it rothers!

 

[Alcdrew]

It's more correct to call it road tax than car tax, because you don't pay it for owning a car, you pay it for keeping said car on the road.

Along that line of argument, it's better to call it environmental tax, as the amount you pay depends on how much CO2 you pump in the air!!

I have a horrible gas guzzling 15 year old car which costs circa £190pa and a nice none polluting bike[unless I had a curry the night before] which costs me nothing. But I'm about to replace my gas guzzler with a simi eco car which will cost me £35pa. And as others have said some cars don't have to pay anything either. So basicly, cars don't own the road they pay for killing the planet....

 

[bonj2]

oh god you're not getting a prius are you?

 

[bonj2]

No. Too expensive. And too big.

Why do people assume that the only efficient cars are new and exclusive? The one I'm getting has been around for years.

What?...

 

[bonj2]

What what?

WHAT CAR are you getting...

 

[bonj2]

No. Too expensive. And too big.

Why do people assume that the only efficient cars are new and exclusive? The one I'm getting has been around for years.

No, I know that priuses aren't efficient. They weight about 5 tons for a start.

 

[bonj2]

Daihatsu Charade.

Hmmm... not as good as a yaris, but not bad, not bad. Could have done worse.

 

[Alcdrew]

See I'm going for the Yaris. Better for my needs. But a lot more than the Daihatsu your getting. But the wife, refuses to drive a manual car any more. Which the Daihatsu auto matic pushes it up to band C in the VED. Plus although twice the price of the Daihatsu, the spec of the TR model is great. And I believe it gets better mileage than yours at 62mpg