Expert answer

Hi Dermott,

Indeed, we’ve heard from more than a few readers about difficulties getting private insurance on a commercial. The first thing you need to do is to change the tax status of your pickup by phoning your nearest motor tax office, and ask them to transfer you to the private car taxation setting. That should help. The next thing to do is to get hold of a good insurance broker who can help you navigate through the sticky quicksand of Irish car insurance. There are no insurers who specialise, as far as we know, in commercial-to-private insurance

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Hi James,

Basically, the situation is as before — as long as the van is older than six months old or has more than 6,000km on the clock, then you’ll pay the usual VRT at 13.3 per cent of the OMSP (the Irish market price as defined by Revenue). As it’s from the North, you’ll also avoid the ten per cent customs duty. Once you do get the camper conversion done, the good news is that motor tax for a camper is only €102 a year.

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Hi Conor,

You say you’ve already taxed the Yeti privately, is that right? Once you’ve informed your local motor tax office of the change of status, that should be sufficient for any insurer. That said, Irish insurers will find any excuse in the book to either not quote you, or to give you some astronomical quote just to make you go away. Our advice is to find a good insurance broker who can help you navigate the ins and outs. 

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Hi Brian,

You will have to pay the VAT I’m afraid. In fact, you’d have to pay it as a commercial buyer as well, but you could of course reclaim it then subsequently. As a private buyer, you just have to pay it, unfortunately. For using a commercial as a private car, you have to let your local motor tax office know that you’re doing so, and you’ll then pay tax based on the size of the engine, not the CO₂ emissions figure. Getting private insurance for a commercial vehicle can be tricky, so shop around carefully or get in touch with a good broker before you commit.

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Hi Kieran,

To tax a commercial vehicle privately, it goes by the engine size. Assuming this is the 2.4 (with a 2,393cc engine), then that works out as €1,034 per annum.

Read our Buying a commercial vehicle for private use  feature for more.

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Hi Danielle,

Yes, you can fill out a TR1 or TR2 form with Revenue to apply for VAT (depending on whether you’re applying as an individual, a sole trader, or a limited company) and you can find full details on that here. If you’re using the van privately (ie for anything other than journeys solely connected to business), then you’ll have to tax it as a private car, which puts you onto the old by-engine-capacity tax system. You’ll need to notify your local motor tax office that you’re doing this, and your insurer too.

We’ve heard tales from some readers that getting private insurance for a van can be tricky, so shop around, and maybe get in touch with a good broker, first.

In the meantime, have a read of our Buying a commercial vehicle for private use feature.

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Hi Maurice,

A car has to be over 30 years old to qualify. See Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained for full details.

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Hi Mary,

If you do manage to get it registered before the end of this month (if you've not already got a VRT appointment, I'm afraid to tell you that you are unlikely to now) then your car will be taxed on its NEDC CO₂ rating, which I believe is 127g/km. That means €270 per annum now and no change for 2021. These guides might be of interest:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained

Guide to Importing Cars from the UK

Expert answer

Hi Eddie,

If you tax a commercial vehicle for private use then it goes by its engine size, regardless of how new it is. The X-Trail's engine is a 1,598cc unit so it costs €514 a year to tax privately. Read more in our Buying a commercial vehicle for private use feature.

As for the X-Trail's economy, it will depend more on how and where you drive it than anything else. The 1.6 diesel car, which is heavier than the van, officially returned about 56mpg. We'd expect you to match that at a 100km/h cruise and maybe average closer to 40mpg unladen for general use.

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Hi Sheila,

Well, in theory the only thing you need to do to change the tax status of a car is to call your local motor tax office and tell them that’s what you want to do. As far as insurance is concerned, I think it would be a good idea to have a chat will a well-connected broker, who might be better placed to help you out. You might be able to find a policy that will allow you to insure the Land Rover as a private car even before it has been officially switched over, or possibly one that starts as a commercial policy but changes over once you’ve got the conversion.