Road Tax?

[Powely]

Put my new disc in the window this morning and the perforated surround has 'TAX disc', 'vehicle TAX', 'TAX period' and 'TAX class' printed on it?

 

[youngoldbloke]

Put my new disc in the window this morning and the perforated surround has 'TAX disc', 'vehicle TAX', 'TAX period' and 'TAX class' printed on it?

Note: 'VEHICLE tax', NOT Road tax.

 

[Powely]

Note: 'VEHICLE tax', NOT Road tax.

Ah yes, noted. I wasn't saying either was correct/incorrect (as I don't know) by the way, just noted it had tax written all over it and thought I'd add that to the debate.

 

[DrJazztap]

Hello guys and gals, first post. The road tax for bicycles argument does make me chuckle, as it's so stupid. I pay road tax for my golf and i have done for every other car i've ever owned over the last 12 years since I started driving. Add on top of that, as others have stated the incredible amounts of tax we've all paid at the pumps and on cigarettes and alcohol? This isn't enough for some motorists? So we are using something for free, and fellow tax payers expect us to pay even more? (what happened to us all being in the same boat??) So what about dog walkers, joggers and children who have to cross these precious roads to get to school? Yes we should start taxing children who walk across roads to get to school.

 

[Ern1e]

Hello guys and gals, first post. The road tax for bicycles argument does make me chuckle, as it's so stupid. I pay road tax for my golf and i have done for every other car i've ever owned over the last 12 years since I started driving. Add on top of that, as others have stated the incredible amounts of tax we've all paid at the pumps and on cigarettes and alcohol? This isn't enough for some motorists? So we are using something for free, and fellow tax payers expect us to pay even more? (what happened to us all being in the same boat??) So what about dog walkers, joggers and children who have to cross these precious roads to get to school? Yes we should start taxing children who walk across roads to get to school.

Born free TAXED to death and even after that !!!!

 

[TheDoctor]

FFS!
VED is charged on a 'polluter pays' basis. Less emissions = less VED.
If anyone has a good reason why I on my bike, should pay more than an Audi A3 TDi Sportback, then I'd be delighted to hear it.
Anyway, it's not up to us as cyclists. If drivers want the system changed, then feel free to have a pop at the politicians. Just don't give me the 'poor hard done by motorist line'. The personal freedom of drivers is all well and good, but anyone not in a car pays a high price in collateral damage.

 

[gaz]

Does it matter what it is called? Semantics really.

I ride a bike, I don't pay to ride it on the roads. There are some cross subsidies from somewhere for me doing this but so what - that's how a society works. Give and take.

Well technically, if we look at the figures, motorists are subsidised (and that is if we take into account the revenue generated from 'road tax'). The costs of maintaining the roads is outstandingly huge!

Although, going by the current state of most roads, there looks to be a bit of penny saving going on!

 

[Dan_h]

I don't have a car so pay no tax for it!

 

[Andy_R]

ok..so why not look at it this way......the VED that anyone pays is in fact a penalty for using a car. If you want to use a car, you have to pay the piper. Works for me

 

[gavroche]

Hello guys and gals, first post. The road tax for bicycles argument does make me chuckle, as it's so stupid. I pay road tax for my golf and i have done for every other car i've ever owned over the last 12 years since I started driving. Add on top of that, as others have stated the incredible amounts of tax we've all paid at the pumps and on cigarettes and alcohol? This isn't enough for some motorists? So we are using something for free, and fellow tax payers expect us to pay even more? (what happened to us all being in the same boat??) So what about dog walkers, joggers and children who have to cross these precious roads to get to school? Yes we should start taxing children who walk across roads to get to school.

Do you pay road tax to play golf!! Now, that is totally unfair!

 

[shouldbeinbed]

ok..so why not look at it this way......the VED that anyone pays is in fact a penalty for using a car. If you want to use a car, you have to pay the piper. Works for me

With it currently being predicated on exhaust emissions, it is a fee we pay to be allowed the luxury of harming the environment a bit for our own personal benefit.

I'm not sure the word penalty hits the mark, it implies it is some sort of fine or unreasonable adjustment. There is also an assumption in that word, and in society generally, that car ownership is a right and that they are a necessity rather than the luxury item they are.
I'm fortunate to earn enough to indulge that luxury and in certain circumstances an internal combustion engine that can get the contents of Ikea or £200 worth of shopping home at my convenience or can take us a couple of hundred miles door to door in a matter of hours rather than days makes life nicer but it is still a luxury and luxury comes at a cost.

You could argue VAT on staple foodstuffs is a penalty or having to pay for spectacles to correct vision problems not of your own making is a penalty but not a damage waiver on an item you don't need to own in order to function effectively in life.

 

[Saluki]

Got yelled at by a car driver the other day at a set of lights "get off the road you don't even pay road tax" I yelled back "you drive a Prius" which seemed to be lost on him.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

So we are using something for free, and fellow tax payers expect us to pay even more? (what happened to us all being in the same boat??) So what about dog walkers, joggers and children who have to cross these precious roads to get to school? Yes we should start taxing children who walk across roads to get to school.

I don't usually join in these "road tax" debates, but was prompted by the above comment as this is the fundamental point, we are not using the roads for free. Anyone who pays tax is paying for the roads.

This is what the "I pay road tax, you don't" brigade completely fail to understand. They think that their car tax is what pays for the road (hence no one else is entitled to use it ) whereas it is actually a tax for the privilege of using their choice of motorized vehicle on the road.

Basically it's sour grapes coz the ignorant think we're a bunch of freeloaders.

 

[al-fresco]

I'd like to buy a cycle shirt covered with the facsimiles of every tax disc I've bought over the last 37 years. It'd look very colourful.

 

[Jdratcliffe]

I'd like to buy a cycle shirt covered with the facsimiles of every tax disc I've bought over the last 37 years. It'd look very colourful.

you should make one!