Used car owners set to be ‘caught up’ by new £410 car tax rise

However, used car experts at Parkers Used car buyers may claim they have difficulty knowing whether their car model is responsible for these fees.

This means that individuals may believe that they do not have to pay these fees and find that they are charged higher fees at renewal time.

Parkers said: “It’s even easier to get caught out when buying a used car. Indeed, it’s often unclear exactly how much a car cost when new, especially as the £40,000 threshold takes into account the price of all optional extras.

“And most online car tax calculators don’t indicate whether a particular car will be subject to additional charges.

“Often the only way to find out is to start the road tax payment process on the government website.”

The ECS charge is £410 and is paid on top of motorists’ existing Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) charges.

However, more cars than ever will pay ECS charges from April as part of widespread updates.

New gasoline and diesel models have paid the fee for years, but electric cars will be charged the rate for the first time this spring.

However, there are concerns that electric models could be unfairly affected by a £40,000 threshold for ECS charges.

The high upfront cost of electric models means almost all mid-sized models exceed the threshold, meaning families could be affected.

Experts at MoreAccounting previously warned that the current level “does not reflect” the most expensive electric models.

They said: “This is in addition to the standard VED rates. Industry experts say the £40,000 threshold does not reflect the luxury of electric vehicles due to their generally higher costs than petrol or diesel cars.