Vauxhall cuts prices to ensure all EVs avoid expensive car tax

Vauxhall has reduced the prices of its top-spec models to ensure that all of its electric vehicles won’t be hit by new expensive car supplement charges.

The Expensive Car Supplement, introduced today (April 1), affects battery-powered vehicles costing over £40,000. It imposes an additional annual fee of £425 for five years on top of the standard rate of tax, which stands at £10 for the first year and £195 thereafter.

As a result, drivers of new electric vehicles costing over £40,000 could face up to £620 per year in road tax, or a total of £3,110 over the first six years of ownership. In contrast, drivers of EVs costing under £40,000 will pay £985 for the same period. Prior to April 1, 2025, electric vehicle owners didn’t have to pay any tax.

Vauxhall’s move means that all of its current range of electric vehicles now fall under the £40,000 threshold, helping drivers to avoid these additional charges.

Eurig Druce, managing director, Vauxhall, said: “With electric cars no longer exempt from Vehicle Excise Duty, Vauxhall is making electric mobility accessible and affordable for British drivers. The Vauxhall electric car range* now sits below the £40,000 Expensive Car Supplement threshold, saving customers some £2,125 in road tax over the first few years of ownership.”

Previously, Vauxhall’s range-topping Grandland Ultimate would’ve cost just over £40,000. But thanks to these price revisions, the battery-powered SUV now comes in at £37,730 – just avoiding the Expensive Car Supplement in the process.

Druce added: “The threshold for the Expensive Car Supplement has remained at £40,000 since inception in 2017 despite subsequent high levels of inflation – if it were to have risen with inflation it would now be around £52,000. With the average price of an EV in the UK at around £48,000, this new tax means that customers buying some of the more attainable electric cars on the market are now being penalised whilst at the same time we are trying to move as many British motorists to electric as quickly as possible.

“The good news is that Vauxhall electric customers are below this new threshold, but we’d urge the government to reconsider this new measure and ensure taxation policies incentivise the majority of drivers to make the shift to electric vehicles.”