The DVLA is at last considering getting rid of tax discs, although not an open discussion, they have confirmed to the BVRLA that it is in deed being considered. For many years, trade and fleet bodies have petitioned the Department of Transport to stop using tax discs. Modern systems, using the registration number can immediately, from a hand held scanner, tell whether a car has tax and insurance, rendering the tax disc unused. This being the case means that the whole system from the DVLA to administration in companies and fleet operators is spending time and money handling something which is simply not uses.
Fleet companies and the BVRLA have always included the tax disc in the list of unnecessary time wasting jobs and it reared its head again this year as the BVRLA carried out an audit that they called their Red Tape Challenge. Estimates already put the savings for the government at something close to £90m plus company savings as well.
What is not being suggested is that the tax is scrapped. Recent newspaper articles suggesting this is the case and that cheaper fuel from reduced tax would be replaced by toll roads for Government income have been denied by the government. The merit of this is clear for all to see as someone covering more miles then pays more tax to cover the cost of servicing the roads that they use with the opposite being true of someone covering low miles. Unfortunately common sense like that does not come easily to a government, especially when they have an existing cash cow, what is being proposed is a tax system that records the payment without raising a disc.
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