DVLA car tax warning as drivers told 'even if you don't have to pay'

Motorists are being warned by the DVLA to check their car is properly taxed ahead of changes next year. Drivers could face a maximum fine of £2,500 if a vehicle is untaxed and not declared off-road (SORN).

Owners of the most polluting vehicles could pay up to £5,490 more in tax under Chancellor Rachel Reeves' new Budget ahead of the 2035 ban on petrol and diesel car sales. The rates for cars, vans, and motorcycles - including hybrid cars and vehicles less than one-year-old - will rise from April 1, 2025.

The DVLA said on social media: "You must tax your vehicle, even if you don't have to pay anything. #TaxItDontRiskIt DVLADigital." Owners of electric cars do not need to pay Vehicle Excise Duty but they must still tax the vehicle.

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Drivers will need a reference number from a recent vehicle tax reminder letter, a vehicle log book (V5C) or the green 'new keeper' slip from a log book. Last year, the DVLA introduced the online 'driver and vehicles account' to centralise documents, Express reports.

Motorists can access their driving records, penalty points, MOT status, vehicle tax and the Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC). Under the tax changes, owners of fully electric vehicles who currently pay a low Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) tax rate of two per cent will have to increase payments to five per cent by 2027/28.

This will increase again by two per cent each year until 29/30. The hybrid vehicle tax structure is changing significantly.

Rates will just be based on CO2 emissions rather than the existing consideration of zero-emission mileage. Excluding first year rates, vehicles emitting between one and 50 grams of CO2 per kilometre will see their rates rise to 18 per cent in 2028/29 and 19 per cent in 2029/30.

Rates for all other vehicle bands will increase by one percentage point annually during these years, with maximum rates reaching 38 per cent and 39 per cent. When it comes to first-year rates, zero-emission cars will pay the lowest at £10 until 2029/30.

Cars emitting between one and 50 grams of CO2 per kilometre, including hybrid vehicles, will increase from £10 to £110 for 2025-26, while cars emitting more than 76 grams of CO2 per kilometre will see the rate double.