Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 section 38

Additional liability for keeper of vehicle chargeable at higher rate

Section 38 requires the court to impose an additional financial liability on the keeper of a vehicle who is convicted of using a vehicle at a lower rate of duty than the rate properly chargeable.

• Where the person convicted of using a vehicle taxed at a lower rate than it should be is also the keeper, the court must order them to pay an additional amount on top of any penalty imposed under section 37.
• The additional amount is calculated as one-twelfth of the difference between the duty rate actually paid and the correct higher rate, multiplied by the number of months (or part months) in the relevant period during which the underpayment persisted.
• For the purposes of the calculation, the vehicle is assumed to have been of the same type throughout the relevant period as it was on the date the offence was committed, unless it can be proved that it fell within a different vehicle category for any whole month or part month.
• If the keeper is convicted of more than one such offence for the same vehicle, the court must reduce the additional amount for any overlapping period to avoid double-counting amounts already ordered under this section for another offence.

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