From today, all Vauxhall electric cars are priced below the threshold for the new ‘Expensive Car Supplement,’ thereby saving Vauxhall customers £2,125 in Vehicle Excise Duty (VED or ‘road tax’) over the first few years of ownership.
From 1 April 2025, the UK government will be implementing significant changes to VED affecting electric vehicles, particularly those with a list price of over £40,000.
Previously, battery-electric vehicles were exempt from VED. However, from 1 April owners of new electric cars will need to pay the lowest first year rate of vehicle tax, which is set at £10 for zero-emissions-in use (0g/km) vehicles. From the second tax payment onwards, they will now pay the standard rate of £195 (the same as ICE cars).
Electric cars priced over £40,000 (including options) will now also attract the new ‘Expensive Car Supplement’. This imposes an additional annual fee of £425 for five years, beginning from the second year of registration, on top of the standard rate. As a result, electric car drivers whose vehicle cost over £40,000, including options, will pay some £620 per year in road tax, or a total of £3,110 over the first six years of ownership.
For vehicles below £40,000 this is a total of £985 for the same period – a saving of £2,125. Prior to 1 April 2025, there was no VED for electric cars.
Eurig Druce, Managing Director, Vauxhall, commented: “With electric cars no longer exempt from Vehicle Excise Duty, Vauxhall is making electric mobility accessible and affordable for British drivers. The Vauxhall electric car range now sits below the £40,000 Expensive Car Supplement threshold, saving customers some £2,125 in road tax over the first few years of ownership.
“The threshold for the Expensive Car Supplement has remained at £40,000 since inception in 2017 despite subsequent high levels of inflation – if it were to have risen with inflation it would now be around £52,000. With the average price of an EV in the UK at around £48,000, this new tax means that customers buying some of the more attainable electric cars on the market are now being penalised whilst at the same time we are trying to move as many British motorists to electric as quickly as possible. The good news is that Vauxhall electric customers are below this new threshold, but we’d urge the government to reconsider this new measure and ensure taxation policies incentivise the majority of drivers to make the shift to electric vehicles.”
Since the end of 2024, Vauxhall has offered an electric version of every car and van in its line-up, including eight electric cars such as the Corsa Electric, Frontera Electric and Grandland Electric – providing choice to customers a decade ahead of the UK’s scheduled 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.
