Insurance Premium Tax – another hit on hauliers
The Road Haulage Association has highlighted the real risk that tomorrows Budget will see the Chancellor slam another massive hike on Insurance Premium Tax. RHA members were strongly opposed to the rise in IPT to 9.5% on 1 November year, the reaction will be even stronger if he raises it again.
Hauliers have a number of insurance policies including road risk, goods in transit, public liability and employer’s liability and the rumoured increase to 12.5% would increase the cost base of an industry already fearful of a rise in fuel duty.
RHA chief executive Richard Burnett commented: “We are hearing a drum beat that the Chancellor may turn again to a rise in Insurance Premium Tax to raise the revenue he desperately needs. As well as hitting every householder and every motorist in the country, another increase will have a serious impact on hauliers and therefore on the economy. It typically costs at least £3,000 per annum to insure an articulated vehicle. A 3% rise in IPT will add a further £90 per annum to this figure. Multiply that across the hundreds of thousands of HGVs that deliver our economy every day and it adds up to a very significant financial hit.
“It will be very hard to recover this increase in cost. It will hit bottom line profits, discourage investment in clean trucks and in driver training. It will hit smaller businesses particularly hard.”
