F&I Management & Training

Car dealer staff without specific vehicle allocation for their company car use are likely to see their related tax bills rise, according to the RMI.

HM Revenue and Customs have plans to revise the way tax due on company car use for motor trade staff is collected, as the current system of dealers making individual claims with their local tax office has been deemed inconsistent.

On 6 April next year, a new national arrangement will replace all local agreements.

RMIF director Sue Robinson said: "The new arrangements are not the result of legislative change, but of HMRC attempting to enforce the existing law more rigidly to ensure best practice."

She said the NFDA had concerns about the arrangements and had lobbied for changes, with HMRC agreeing only to minor amendments.

"We are not sure that this is the correct way forward," she continued. "There will be winners and losers, but we think there will be more losers."

Meanwhile, the quarterly Company Car Trends survey by GE Capital Solutions, Fleet Services, found the state of the economy and its effect to be top priority on the fleet agenda.

When asked what was likely to have the greatest influence on fleet policy decision making within the next year, 97.9per cent of respondents said general economic conditions - a figure up 12 per cent year on year.

Oil and fuel prices were the second most voiced concern, with 97.3 per cent pointing to this issue.

Number three was a decline in business at 96.2 per cent.

Environmental considerations, which had consistently topped the table in recent CCT surveys, fell down to number four this year, with just 90.5 per cent of those surveyed mentioning the issue.

One hundred per cent believed demand for traditional company cars among essential users would increase, while a rise among non-essential users was also expected to rise, with 76.4 per cent saying this was the case.

DATED: 11.11.08

FEED: MT