Family Cars Driven Off Road
Tens of thousands of cars will become almost worthless as a result of the decision to raise road tax on older models with higher carbon dioxide emissions by up to £245 a year.
These families now face an impossible dilemma because many will struggle to pay the higher road tax but will not be able to afford to buy a more fuel-efficient car with a lower road-tax
Many families will find that they cannot sell their cars even though they are in good working order, with relatively low mileage and no more than seven years old.
CAP, which supplies the used car industry with data on residual values, said that many larger cars would be reduced to their scrap value because they would fall into one of the higher tax brackets being introduced for high-emission cars next April.
As an example, CAP estimates that the road tax increase would cut 20%, or £1,000, off the value of a 2001 Renault Espace 2LT Privilege people carrier, a popular choice of family car.
These families now face an impossible dilemma because many will struggle to pay the higher road tax but will not be able to afford to buy a more fuel-efficient car with a lower road-tax rating.
The average three-year-old car last month was worth £600 less than the average three-year-old car in April last year. Compare this to cars with CO2 emissions of more than 225g/km, the difference was £2,000.
This is madness. The Government should have given far more warning about this increase. Who is going to buy such a second hand car with this added extra?
FemaleFirst - Jackie Violet