LICENSING AND REGISTRATION.
Page 10
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• Users' Difficulties Explained. The Double-purpose Vehicle and the Incidence of Taxation Thereof.
THE GREATEST number of inquiries which we receive in connection with licensing and registration concerntdouble-purpoee employment of commercial chassis. Quite a number of our correspondents seem to hold the impression that if they require to use a vehicle partly for goods work and partly for hackney carriage work, two separate licences are necessary, and, therefore, two separate licence fees have to be paid, one to cover the vehicle as a goods carrier and one as a, hackney vehicle.
This is a completely wrong impression, as, under Sub-Section 4 of Section 8 of the Roads Bill, a person using a vehicle which is licensed for a certain purpose for some other purpose is liable to a penalty if the rate of duty for that other purpose is higher than the rate chargeable in respect of the licence held by him.
The legal phraseology of this clause is heavy and cumbersome, but the purport is clear. , Taking a vehicle weighing not more than three tons as a goods vehicle and capable of carrying 32 passengers as a hackney vehicle, the alternative licence fees are, re
spectively, 225 as a goods vehicle and 260 as a hackneyapkney vehicle ; if the vehicle, is located in the London
area the hackney vehicle licence fee would be 272. The amount of the licensing fee as a hackney vehicle being the higher, a vehicle so registered could be used for either purpose throughout the year, the fact that alternative bodies are used being declared at the time of registration, , There are so many vehicles in this country which are made to serve this double purpose that the incidence of the taxation is important. Many vehicles are used as hackney vehicles—in other words, motor coaches or chars-I-banes—during the summer months, and as goods vehicles during the winter months. In respect of such vehicles it will be necessary to take cart quarterly licences. Again taking our example of
• a vehicle which weighs not more than three tons, the _quarterly licence fee would be £7 10s., or £15 for 1,ix months, whilst, if it will carry 32 passengers, the quarterlyilicence fee in the country districts would be 218; or 236 for the six months; for vehicles in the London area the hackney vehicle, fee would be ,221i12s. per quarter, or 243 4s. for the six months. It will thus be seen that it is cheaper by 28 in the . country districts and by 213 16s. in the London area to take out quarterly licences for such a vehicle. The difficulty, however, in this matter appears to • be that, whereas March iath would he early enough te change the character of the vehicle from a goods vehicle to a hackney vehicle, September 30th is really too early to revert to the goods-carrying body, as quite. a large amount of motor, coach work can be obtained -cluringtOcteber. The result of taking out three quarterly licences as a hackney vehicle at 218 per quarter (country districts) and of one quarterly licence as a goods vehicle would be that th& total licence fee would amount to 261 10s, as against .260 for a hackney carriage-licence for the whale year. The difference in the London area is only a matter of 6s., as the yearly licence of the hackney vehicle costs 272, and by taking out four quarterly licences, ono of which would be as a goods vehicle, the cost would be 272 6s.
So that it seems that, if an owner decides that the season during which he will use his vehicle as a motor coach extends from the end of March well into October, his best course would be to register the vehicle for the whole year as a hackney vehicle. Another important point arises with respect to Section 11, Sub-Section 2, in which it is stated that 010
where a licence has been taken out in, respect of E vehicle at the rate of duty appropriate to a hack./ carriage seating not more than a certain number persons, the person keeping the vehicle shall be ha to a penalty if it is used on any occasion for purpose of carrying more persons. 'The amount of • penalty can be three times the differencebetween respective duties or £20, whichever amount is a dexter.• Supposing the vehicle is registered to carry 26 p sons—on any occasion on which extra passengers carried, the amount of the penalty (supposing excess number of six or less) could be 236, wh: if the excess amounted toseven persons or mei( could be £66.
A letter in our correspondence columns from reader deals with this point„ and shows that it quite a common practice so to overload hacki vehicles. Of course, the reason for the penalty, wh is going to restrict and prevent the carrying o: greater number of passengers than that for which vehicle is registered, is that the revenue shall not defrauded.
One correspondent says that his vehicle has a s( ing capacity of 17, including the driver, and he s that he has been advised to register for 14 passeng and not for 20, which is the next category,wl) would mean a saving of 212 per annum in the licens fee; but, as we pointed out to him, according to section of the Bill, he would be, liable to a pen of 236 every time he carried a single passenger o the registered number.
Another matter which closely concerns owners motor coaches is the fact that, invariably, besi the driver they send a conductor with each vehi, particularly with one ()Norge stating capacity. schedule of taxation makes no provision for this c (Liao; and he must evidently be numbered ann the passengers, so that a 32-seater moter coach wo on/y be allowed to carry 33 persona, including • driver and concluder. We think that this is a mat which shoed, be taken up in Parliament whilst Bill is under discussion.
A question commonly put to us is as to whet a vehicle registered as a hackney vehicle in the ; persons' category (for which, in a country distr the licence fee of £12 is paid) could be used for priv work, or whether such a vehicle registered as a priv vehicle (the horse-power being 20 and the tax, tln fore, 225) could be used for hiring out to frier the vehicle, however, not plying for public, hire owner in circumstances such as are indicated in question should registeethe vehicle as a private vi cle, paying 220 tax and, therefore, being free to II the velticle to whomsoever he may please. A number of questions have been put to us in e tion to general licences to be granted to menu: -hirers and dealers in mechanically propelled vehic It will have been seen that this particular matter been under discussion in Parliament by way of amendment proposed by Mr. A. R. Atkey, M.P., ; it would certainly seem that the Minister of Tiling will beprepared to accept a compromise of 21€ the licence fee in Trla,ea of the 215 per annum 1 charged for each licence. We have had many hundreds of letters propounC conundrums and problems, and we are, ready at times to deal with such questions and to • ad readers on any matter in which they are in doi The schedule of taxation which appeared in the if of The C ommercial M otor for December 7th is pric in postcard form, and will be sent, free of cha to all inquirers.