Pay Per Mile for EVs: What’s Changing and Why It’s Not the End of the World
There has been a lot of discussion about the Government’s plan to introduce a pay-per-mile tax for electric cars. It sounds worrying at first, especially when headlines make it seem like EV drivers are about to be hit with big new charges. But the reality is far more balanced, and by the time the system comes into place the situation for petrol and diesel owners will have changed significantly too.
From April 2028, the Government plans to introduce a mileage-based tax for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Current proposals suggest around 3p per mile for fully electric cars and 1.5p per mile for plug-in hybrids. The idea is to replace some of the money currently raised through fuel duty, which EVs don’t pay at all. As more people move to electric, the Treasury needs a new way of collecting road revenue.
If you look at the numbers, the impact for the average driver is smaller than it may seem. Someone doing about 8,000 miles a year would pay in the region of £240. While no one likes a new tax, this is still far lower than what a petrol or diesel driver pays through fuel duty over the same distance. Electric cars will continue to benefit from cheaper running costs overall, especially if drivers charge at home.
The key thing to remember is that this change won’t happen overnight. By 2028, fuel duty is expected to be rising again after years of being frozen, so petrol and diesel drivers may well find themselves paying more anyway. In that context, the pay-per-mile system isn’t a punishment for EV owners but simply a more modern way of taxing driving fairly.
There are still questions around how the system will work for people who drive high mileages for work, like taxi or delivery drivers. But for most of us, the cost is likely to be manageable and still cheaper than running a traditional petrol or diesel car.
Overall, this new system shouldn’t be seen as the end of the road for electric vehicles. EVs will remain cheaper to run, cleaner for the environment and more efficient. The pay-per-mile charge is just part of the bigger shift happening as the UK moves away from fossil fuels. It’s a new way of funding the roads we all use, rather than a sign that EV ownership is about to become unaffordable.
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