Medical courier charities exemption from Vehicle Excise Duty
Published 11 July 2019
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Who is likely to be affected
Registered charities who own purpose-built vehicles used primarily to transport medical products.
General description of the measure
This measure exempts purpose-built vehicles used by medical courier charities, commonly referred to as Blood Bikes, from Vehicle Excise Duty (VED). For a vehicle to be exempt from VED, it must meet all the following criteria:
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it is primarily used to transports medical products
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it is readily identifiable as a vehicle used to transport medical products by being marked ‘Blood’ on both sides
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it is registered to a charity
Policy objective
To support the work of these charities, this exemption will align the VED treatment of medical courier charity vehicles with other emergency vehicles such as police vehicles, fire engines and ambulances.
Background to the measure
This measure was announced at Budget 2018.
Detailed proposal
Operative date
This measure will have effect on and after 1 April 2020.
Current law
Schedule 1 of the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 (VERA) defines the current VED rates. Section 5, paragraph 1 of VERA states that vehicles which are exempt shall not be charged VED. Paragraph 2 states that the descriptions of vehicles exempt from VED are specified in Schedule 2.
Proposed revisions
Schedule 2 of VERA will be amended so that purpose-built vehicles owned by charities and primarily used to transport medical products are exempt from VED.
Summary of impacts
Exchequer impact (£m)
| 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | negligible | negligible | negligible | negligible | negligible |
The Office for Budget Responsibility included the impact of this measure in their forecast at Budget 2018. This measure is expected to have a negligible impact on the Exchequer.
Economic impact
This measure is not expected to have any significant economic impacts.
Impact on individuals, households and families
This measure has no impact on individuals as it only affects registered charities who own purpose-built vehicles used to transport medical products.
There is not expected to be any impact on family formation, stability or breakdown.
Equalities impacts
This measure is not expected to have any impact on groups sharing protected characteristics.
Impact on business including civil society organisations
This measure is expected to have a negligible positive impact on around 40 charities who own eligible vehicles. One-off costs will include familiarisation with these changes. There are not expected to be any ongoing costs.
Operational impact (£m) (HMRC or other)
There will be negligible financial impact on operational costs for the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
Other impacts
Other impacts have been considered and none have been identified.
Monitoring and evaluation
This measure will be evaluated and monitored through the DVLA vehicle licensing data.
Further advice
If you have any questions about this change, contact the Energy and Transport Taxes Team by email at: ETTAnswers@HMTreasury.gov.uk.