LIABLE FOR BACK TAX
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• We operate a two-axied tractor which was upplated from 32 tonnes to 38 tonnes before we bought It, though we have always used and taxed it at 32 tonnes.
At a roadside check a traffic examiner said the tax we paid was wrong and we have now received a demand from the DVLA for five months back duty at the difference between the 32 and 38-tonne rate, even though we can prove It has not been used at more than 32 tonnes and no one can operate a 2+2 at 38 tonnes.
We have been told court action will be taken if the back duty and a penalty are not paid. What do you advise?
• If you do not pay the demand from DVLA it is very likely that court proceedings will be brought. The court would order the back duty to be paid and impose a fine. The conviction would also count against your good repute for Operators Licensing purposes.
The law is that the annual rate of duty for an articulated vehicle is based on the tractor unit's revenue weight and the number of axles with which it and any trailer it draws are fitted.
Revenue weight is defined in Section 60A of the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 and, in this case, it means the vehicle's Ministry plated gross train weight.
When the tractor was replated for 38 tonnes it became liable to duty at the 38-tonne rate, regardless of the laden weight it is actually used at. Section 37 of the Act makes it an offence to use a vehicle on a road when a higher rata of duty is due and has not been paid.
Section 38 provides for the recovery of back duty where a person is convicted of the offence. In this case the amount of back duty is one twelfth of the difference between the 32-tonne and 38-tonne annual tax rates for every month, or part of a month, between the time the tractor was plated for 38 tonnes and the time of the offence.
However, Section 40 provides that you will not be liable for back duty for any month or part of a month if you prove that you were not the keeper of the vehicle at that time. So the DVLA claim can only go back to the time you bought the vehicle.