Drivers hit by ‘double taxing’ of cars under new regulations

Windfall: The AA claims this has garnered £38m for the Government

Motorists are being hit by the “double taxing” of cars for the month they change hands under new regulations accompanying the scrapping of the need to show tax discs on windscreens, the AA has said.

This double tax is providing the Government with an estimated £38 million windfall, the AA claims.

Since October drivers have not been required to display their vehicle excise duty ( VED) tax discs on their windscreens, with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) logging tax details electronically.

Under the new regime a car tax is automatically cancelled when a vehicle changes hands.

The old owner can only claim back full months, not part ones, with the new owner required to tax the car immediately.

The AA said it had heard of cases where a car was transferred from one member of the family to another but the family were shocked to find that VED was not refunded for that month, and yet the new owner had to purchase VED for the full month.

“Hence the family were paying tax twice for the same month on what has become a ‘doppelganger’ vehicle,” the AA said.

Less than two months before the changes in October 42% of a sample of 18,000 AA members knew nothing about them.

More than half (51%) did not know that unexpired tax could not be passed on and 60% did not know about automatic cancellation of the tax disc.

Hence the family were