Every driver in the UK who owns a petrol or diesel vehicle will soon face a financial penalty.
From April, vehicle excise duty (VED) rates – also known as vehicle tax or vehicle tax – will increase, meaning owners will pay more.
Sean Kemple, spokesman for lending firm Close Brothers Motor Finance, said owners of petrol and diesel vehicles would pay more, however.
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As the Manchester Evening News reports, this is because these types of cars produce more air pollution.
VED charges for vehicles that emit more than 255g/km of CO2 will increase by £120 to £2,365 from April.
Owners of cars that emit between 226 and 255 g/km of pollution will see their price increase by £105, while the increase will be £75 for vehicles that produce between 191 and 225 g/km.
The only vehicles that will not see an increase in VED are those that emit less than 75g/km of CO2.
Kemple also issued a warning about the “challenge” ahead as more and more drivers switch to electric vehicles.
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He said the UK government should “offset” tax revenue with more and more motorists looking for a more environmentally friendly alternative.
Speaking to Daily Express, he said: ‘You can see the incentive from a tax point of view of road tax and in-kind benefits moving towards low-emission vehicles.
“It’s better for everyone involved, so it’s a win-win situation.
“The challenge then is how the government offsets that tax revenue against what it would have gotten from gasoline and diesel vehicles.
“What you see then are the consumers of petrol and diesel, in their opinion, I guess being penalized by the type of vehicle they are buying.
The Treasury has previously revealed it will have to fill a £40billion black hole due to the loss of VED and fuel tax rates.
The changes were first announced in last year’s fall budget.
HM Revenue and Customs said the hike was to ensure VED rates are increased along with the retail price index (RPI).
They said increasing VED rates in 2022 will ensure rates are “maintained in real terms.”
They said the changes will ensure motorists “a fair contribution to public finances”.
They added: “This measure will impact motorists owning a car, van or motorbike or using a motorbike trade licence.
“The increase in VED rates is in line with the RPI, which means rates will remain unchanged in real terms for vehicle owners.”
