March/April 2014
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BVRLA News The bimonthly newsletter of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association
Budget fails to support fleet take-up of EVs By Gerry Keaney, BVRLA Chief Executive The Chancellor’s 2014 Budget will go down in history as a missed opportunity. George Osborne said he was extending support for low emission vehicles, but there was precious little evidence of that when you examine the detail. He said he was extending the 2% increase in company car tax in 2017/18 and 2018/19, but brushed over the fact that he was also raising the tax rate for zeroemission vehicles at twice that rate - by four percentage points – in 2018/19. It means an employee choosing an electric car this year and paying tax at the 40% rate would see their company car benefitin-kind rax bill soar from £0 per year to around £1,500 within four years.
Earlier this year, the Government reiterated its goal of moving the UK’s car fleet to ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) by 2040. The fleet sector is a key market for electric vehicles because it already operates the cleanest cars on UK roads and makes purchasing decisions based on rational, cost of ownership calculations. By tweaking the tax regime the government has the power to influence these decisions and make choosing an ultra-low emission vehicle the obvious choice for thousands of businesses and their drivers. Unfortunately, the company car tax measures announced in the Budget will do little, if anything, to accelerate the uptake of ULEVs. Instead, as a reward for operating the lowest emitting vehicles on UK roads, company car drivers will pay an extra £720 million in tax over the next five years.
By 2018/19, this electric car driver would be paying almost exactly the same amount in company car tax as if they had chosen a similar-sized diesel car with all its associated emissions.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of grey fleet drivers are encouraged to do extra mileage in their old polluting cars because the government hasn’t got the nerve to tackle the issue of inflated AMAP (Approved Mileage Allowance Payments) rates.
The tax incentive will have gradually vanished.
Where is the ultra-low emission logic in that? u
The annual general meeting of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association Ltd will be held at 9.30am on Tuesday 20 May 2014. The AGM will take place at the association's offices at River Lodge, Badminton Court, Church Street, Amersham, Bucks, HP7 0DD. The meeting will be held for the following purposes: • To reveive the Chairman's report • To receive the report of the Committee of Management • To receive the report of the auditors • To elect the Committee of Management • To elect auditors and arrange their renumeration By order of the Committee of Management. Gerry Keaney, Chief Executive
BVRLA outlines £41m annual savings package What the Government can do to save BVRLA members £22million a year, and save DVLA £19m per year. page 3 Spotlight on commercial vehicles Looking forward to the CV Show at the end of April, plus an interview with the new Chair of the CV Committee. page 4 All the pictures from the Annual Dinner 950 guests, five award winners, two Maseratis and an entertaining after-dinner speaker relive the Big Event in our picture round-up pages 6-7 New Consumer Rights Bill nears completion The latest piece of legislation, and what the proposals mean for companies offering rental and personal contract leases. page 8 The Financial Conduct Authority takes over What the BVRLA is doing to help members thrive under the new regime, and what you can start working on right now. page 9 Dates you won't want to miss out in 2014 Professional development courses, networking opportunities and BVRLA events for your diary. page 11
• Promoting responsible road transport since 1967 •