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What do you make of the new pay-per-mile road charging?

Journalist: Jon Brady, Daily Mail

ended 27. November 2025

EV drivers - I'd like to hear from you urgently today!

From April 2028, electric car drivers will pay a road charge of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid drivers will pay 1.5p per mile, with the rates going up each year with inflation.

The new tax is about "half the fuel duty rate paid by drivers of petrol cars", according to the government's independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility.

After a few years of not paying any taxes, you now pay VED on EVs, and will pay per-mile charging as a compensatory form of fuel duty. How do you feel about it? (Ideally, attach a pic of yourself with your car!)

2 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Scott GallacherVerified
Director at Rowley Turton
As an EV driver, I can’t say I’m surprised. No Chancellor was ever going to give up billions in fuel duty forever, so a per-mile charge was inevitable. What is contradictory, though, is introducing this tax at the same time as pledging £1.3bn to encourage EV adoption. Personally, it won’t change how or where I drive, but it does feel like yet another tax raid on those of us who moved to electric when the Government encouraged us to do so.

I've added a photo with my car to my media section
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Editor
Eamonn PrendergastVerified
Chartered Financial Adviser at Palantir Financial Planning Ltd
“A pay-per-mile tax at this stage sends the wrong signal to drivers and the industry alike The government can’t talk about accelerating the EV transition while simultaneously adding new costs that make adoption less attractive. For years, people were encouraged to go electric now early adopters feel penalised. While it’s fair that all road users contribute to maintenance, this measure risks slowing demand just as EV ownership is starting to gain traction.
A smarter approach would have been to phase in charges gradually, once infrastructure and affordability had truly caught up. Right now, it feels like the government has pressed the brakes on its own net zero ambitions.