Foreign truck tax now in effect
The HGV Road User Levy, whose effect is to bill foreign hauliers for their use of the UK’s roads, was launched at the beginning of the month.
The policy, which has long been advocated by representatives of the UK’s road transport industry, has been designed to redress a perceived disparity whereby British truck drivers have had to pay tolls and levies when working on the continent, whereas foreign trucks in the UK have not been required to do the same.
In a campaign bulletin issued shortly after the scheme went live, the Road Haulage Association (RHA) reported that fixed penalty notices totalling almost £20,000 were issued to foreign hauliers on the first day of the levy alone, according to transport minister Stephen Hammond.
Meanwhile, the transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin (pictured, left) said: “The HGV levy will provide a massive boost for the UK haulage industry. It will create a level playing field across Europe, giving UK firms a much better opportunity to win business.
“This is yet another example of how we are taking positive action to back British business and build a stronger, more competitive economy.”
The levy affects all HGVs of 12 tonnes or more that drive on UK roads, regardless of country of registration – but is offset for UK hauliers by a concurrent reduction in domestic Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), meaning nine out of ten UK vehicles will pay no more than previously. This allows the UK government to avoid falling foul of European competition rules by discriminating specifically against non-UK hauliers.
Charges vary between £1.70 and £10 per day, or £85 to £1,000 per year. Foreign vehicle operators must pay the levy before using UK roads, either via a registered account for regular users, or on a ‘pay and go’ basis.
Dave Meaden, chief executive officer of Northgate Public Services, which designed and operates the payment scheme for the levy, said: “The Department for Transport and Northgate Public Services have worked constructively together to deliver this innovative scheme to the April 2014 deadline, 12 months earlier than originally envisaged.”
Karen Dee, director of policy at the Freight Transport Association, commented: “FTA has consistently supported the introduction of the HGV Road User Levy. Until now operators of foreign HGVs have paid nothing in UK taxes. They pay vehicle tax in their own country, and buy low-taxed diesel before entering the UK, and in so doing save up to £200 on a full tank of fuel. The levy won’t fully redress this imbalance in costs, but it does create a fairer arrangement for UK operators.
“Road charges and tolls are part and parcel of operating a truck on the continent. It is only right that foreign HGVs using UK roads should do the same. FTA believes that the benefits of the HGV levy for UK operators will go beyond the charge that foreign carriers must pay from 1 April. The associated extension and upgrading of the DVSA and DVA roadside enforcement cameras network offers the potential for more effective enforcement of foreign HGV safety standards.”
RHA policy director Jack Semple said: “The levy means that visiting hauliers are legally required to contribute to the cost of our roads for the first time. It also does what is possible, within EU law, to level the playing field between UK hauliers and those from the continent and Ireland…
“The DfT and Treasury have worked to ensure that the scheme keeps the impact on the UK industry to an absolute minimum and have engaged constructively with the RHA in achieving that.”
Not all aspects of the new levy have been universally welcomed, with the Freight Transport Association Ireland (FTAI) advocating an exemption for Irish hauliers transiting Northern Ireland via the A5.
FTAI general manager Neil McDonnell said: “With Irish taxpayers about to pour £50m into the A5 transit route from next year, it defies logic and fairness for the UK Government to ask Irish operators to pay a levy for using this transit route.
“The N2/A5 is a vital part of the road infrastructure for hauliers in the north-west, as a great many businesses in Donegal are totally dependent on the route for access to air freight and continental sea freight from Ireland.”
More information on the Road User Levy is available here, at the gov.uk website.
