Can I insure and tax a Caddy privately?
Can I insure a 1.9 Caddy and tax it privately?
Shane Kennedy (Kilmakthoms )Sep 2020 Filed under: insurance
Expert answer
Hi Shane,
Yes you can. The tax part is pretty simple — you just call into or phone your local motor tax office and let them know that you want to convert the van to private tax. With a 1.9-litre engine, you’ll pay €710 per year in motor tax. Insurance, to judge from the responses we’ve had from some readers, is a little more tricky, but is possible. You’ll probably have to do a good bit of phoning around, or possibly get in touch with a good local broker.
Can I get classic insurance on my Mercedes?
My Mercedes is nineteen years old; can I get classic insurance?
Michael Hogan (Dublin)Sep 2020 Filed under: insurance
Expert answer
Hi Michael,
No, I’m afraid you can’t. In Ireland a car has to be at least 30 years old before it qualifies for classic (vintage, as it’s somewhat erroneously known) tax or insurance.
Is a newer petrol car cheaper to tax?
I have a 1990 Mercedes petrol car and the tax is expensive, if I bought a 2012 petrol car would the tax be cheaper?
Pat Campionlaois (Dublin)Sep 2020 Filed under: taxation
Expert answer
Hi Pat,
Yup, such are the vagaries of the CO2-based tax system that we switched to in 2008. The idea was to reward those choosing vehicles with lower emissions, and that is often most starkly shown up when you start looking at older cars with larger engines versus newer models, which probably have much more power, but have smaller, more efficient engines. Of course there’s an argument that says that keeping an old car going, rather than buying a new one, is actually overall better for the environment, but that’s not going to wash with the tax authorities I’m afraid.
Taxes for a wheelchair user of a new van?
Hi,
I have to get a new car/van to use and transport my wheelchair . I have read your article on tax and I am wondering if I can buy a small van, i.e. Berlingo or such like, and what tax and charges would I be liable for please?
Margaret Gibson (Letterkenny, Co. Donegal)Sep 2020 Filed under: wheelchair
Expert answer
Hi Margaret,
In theory, as a disabled driver, you’re allowed to be exempted from, or able to receive a rebate of, both VRT and VAT on a new car purchase, and the VAT on any costs of conversion to suit your needs. However, right now while the tax relief scheme is not suspended, the issuing of Primary Medical Certificates is — thanks to a high court ruling that has thrown the system that assess people for PMCs into confusion. It’s hoped that the scheme will be back on track soon, but the short answer is that we don’t know when that will be.
Will servicing elsewhere affect my warranty?
Will my warranty be affected by not using a main dealer to service my car bought second hand from a small dealer? The car is a 182-reg Hyundai i10.
John Connors (Thurles)Sep 2020 Filed under: warranty
Expert answer
Hi John,
It may well be. Generally speaking, when it comes to longer warranties such as those offered by Hyundai and Kia, for example, they stipulate that the warranty continues to be valid only if the car is serviced at a main dealer. Hyundai Ireland tells us "Please note that only cars sourced through Hyundai Cars Ireland Ltd. and purchased through a Hyundai Authorised Dealer qualify for the five-year triple care package." It would be worth having a word with your nearest Hyundai dealer before you take the plunge, perhaps?
I gave my car for scrappage to a fraudster...
I stupidly gave a car I wanted scrapped to a fraudster and now I'm getting renewal motor tax forms for it as it's still registered in my name. What can I do to stop this now?
Jimmy Gallagher (Bettystown)Sep 2020 Filed under: scrappage
Expert answer
Hi Jimmy,
OK, first of all have you reported all of this to the Gardaí? That should definitely be your first port of call. When reporting, ask the Guards for an incident number or a case number, and then write to your local motor tax office, explaining the circumstances, quoting the incident number and if possible the name of the investigating Garda. That should be enough to clear it up, but it would also be a good idea to have a chat with your solicitor about it.
Can I, as a private driver, buy a crew cab?
Recently returned home from Australia, looking at buying second hand Land Rover Discovery or Range Rover. I’m confused with the commercial crew cab idea. If I buy a crew cab as a private driver, no small business or VAT number, can I drive it and get it taxed commercially or am I going to make trouble for myself?
Cheers
Paul
Paul Lynch (Nenagh)Sep 2020 Filed under: commercial vehicle
Expert answer
Hi Paul,
Short answer: yes. The good bit is that you can still pick up second hand crew-cabs, or large SUVs that (briefly, technically) qualified as commercial vehicles and they are generally cheaper to buy than their regular passenger car counterparts. However, if you tax such a vehicle as a commercial, you can only use it as such — no social, domestic, nor pleasure use and there are some hefty fines if you’re caught out.
I want to buy a van for personal use...
I want to buy a 2.0-litre van (commercial), but I'm not able to pay €333. And I don't want this. Two questions:
1 - Will I pay €710 (private car standard) no matter which year the vanwas made?
2 - Can I change, if I buy, to NCT test centre from CVRT, even if the car is a van? Are there some procedures/forms for this or what?
Thank you!
Gelu Rusu (Malin Head)Aug 2020 Filed under: commercial vehicle
Expert answer
Hi Gelu,
Yes and no. Yes, you can tax it as a private vehicle and the year doesn’t really matter. No, you can’t get it tested under NCT regs — as far as the NCT are and always will be concerned, it’s a van, so it needs an annual CVRT test.
Should I get a newer Toyota for tax reasons?
What is the road tax on a 2008 1.4 petrol Toyota Corolla Verso? I have a 2006 and it's very expensive for the 3,000km the car does a year.
Martin
Martin Sutton (Churchtown, Dublin 14)Aug 2020 Filed under: taxation
Expert answer
Hi Martin,
Yup, the problem is that 2008 was the switchover year to CO2-based taxation, and the old Toyota petrol engines were pretty high up the charts in that respect. Actually, are you sure it’s 1.4? Because we only have data for a Corolla Verso with a 1.6-litre engine from that year. That engine had emissions of 177g/km, which would account for the high motor tax cost, but in theory a vehicle bought in 2008 should be eligible to revert to the old engine capacity system, which would bring down the cost a little. It’s certainly worth raising the issue with your local motor tax office to see what’s possible.
Is a previously N1 Touareg this costly to tax?
Hi,
T have a 2016 Volkswagen Touareg that is registered as N1 and I want to change it to M1 and I can, but they tell me that because it was N1 when first registered that my car tax will still be on engine size not CO2, so I will have to pay €1,500 when an identical car can be taxed for €750. I would be grateful for any advice you can give me on this.
Tommy O Donnell (Ireland)Aug 2020 Filed under: taxation
Expert answer
Hi Tommy,
I’m afraid that is the case — when you tax a commercial vehicle as a private one you go back to the old engine capacity tax system, so for a big car like a Touareg, with a big engine, that can often work out much more expensive.