Gardai seizing cars on R121

murphaph

Fairly big operation in place this evening on the R121 (Lucan-Clonsilla stretch) at one of the gates to Luttrelstown Castle, near the Garda club at Westmanstown. At least 10 guards and a flatbed truck and about a half dozen foreign reg cars parked up with one on the flatbed.

They barely looked at discs, just the number plate.

ninty9er

The seized 2 "For Sale" cars at the side of the N7 at the Parkway Roundabout on Saturday night....was around 11pm and they were pulling at the roundabout with another vehicle.

pvt.joker

Nice work, seems this is becoming a regular thing.

Funny how its only started since the economy has taken a downturn and the government if facing a budget defecit. Coincidence I think not

Guy:Incognito

pvt.joker wrote: »

Nice work, seems this is becoming a regular thing.

Funny how its only started since the economy has taken a downturn and the government if facing a budget defecit. Coincidence I think not

I seriously doubt they think they can turn the economy around by seizing a few hundred unreged cars. Even if the managed to get a couple of million, it's a drop in the ocean.

ambro25

Stekelly wrote: »

I seriously doubt they think they can turn the economy around by seizing a few hundred unreged cars.

Someone at the Revenue/Customs must think otherwise, as so many sting operations in such a tight timeframe in/around Dublin are indeed rather "too coincidental to be honest" (relative to years past). Don't forget the centuries-old saying: the small brooks make the big rivers

I don't think it's so much related to the turning economy (although it wouldn't surpise me one bit - but of course, we'll never know ), more related to the upcoming VRT regime change, and everybody and their dogs rushing to buy UK 2nd-handers before July... never seen so many 911s per square meter in my life than recently around D4/D6 - and I spent quite a while in Stuttgart! :eek:

Guy:Incognito

ambro25 wrote: »

I don't think it's so much related to the turning economy (although it wouldn't surpise me one bit - but of course, we'll never know ), more related to the upcoming VRT regime change, and everybody and their dogs rushing to buy UK 2nd-handers before July... never seen so many 911s per square meter in my life than recently around D4/D6 - and I spent quite a while in Stuttgart! :eek:

That doesnt really make sense. The peopl erushing to buy cars before july will be registering before that to save money, so theres no need for a clampdown on them. The people buyign diesels are in no rush.

ambro25

All true, which is what makes me lean more towards the revenue thing.

ninty9er

finfacts.com wrote:

The Irish Revenue says it intends to target cash businesses for investigation in relation to tax evasion this year.. Speaking at the launch of Revenue's Annual Report for 2007, today, Chairman of the Revenue Commissioners Josephine Feehily said that the focus would be different in certain parts of the country.

Feehily said the Revenue in the South-East had recently bought a batch of cash registers and had them dismantled to see how they might be manipulated for tax evasion purposes. Tax officials had now started to visit businesses to examine how their cash registers are being operated.

She said that in other parts of the country the focus will be on the motor industry, while elsewhere it will be on pubs.

Feehily also said Revenue would be using a new sophisticated computer-based system to identify and pursue high-risk taxpayers. The new system, REAP, already includes information on property transactions, as well as details of substantial purchases including cars and other items. It will also include financial data accessed through the EU savings directive from next month.

Feehily said the system would enable Revenue to cross-reference 700,000 taxpayers over the next year to see if their tax profile matched their lifestyles.

The new REAP system will rank taxpayers in relation to their individual risk of tax default. Revenue will then investigate the riskiest taxpayers.

This was also mentioned in the Prime Time Investigates issue surrounding VRT evasion.

Henry Ford III

There are so many UK reg'd cars about it's unreal. I park in a car park and there must be 15 of them in there daily.

Mailman

VRT on personal imports is a nice money spinner for the government.

See below for facts:
http://www.cso.ie/releasespublications/documents/transport/current/vehlicm.pdf

The stats for drop in registrations showed that while sales for new cars had dropped personal imports being VRT'd is holding up nicely.
I figure 19,000 cars at an average of €4k(conservative) each is €76M and that's even before motor tax or NCT or insurance is paid for which generate tax/activity in the economy.
Those 19K cars are only the guys who presented their cars for VRT.
There are 10's if not 100's of thousands of foreign registered cars that should be driving on Irish plates.
You can disagree with me on the numbers of foreign registered cars(that haven't a genuine excuse for keeping their foreign plates) on our roads but you can't disagree that the amount of revenue involved is far from trivial and will pay a lot of public sector salaries now that the government's other revenue streams have dried up.
I'm all in favour of this. I do not want my income tax rate going up to 46% in the next budget to pay for public sector workers. Yes there should be fewer people in the public sector but throwing them on the dole when we are heading in to recession isn't a smart thing to do.
I also don't like the arrogance of the motor dealers over the last 10 years but I don't want them going out of business and now that VRT is being enforced there is a chance they can move some of their stock and not throw staff on to the dole queue. Where are the mechanics, valeters, salesmen and storesmen going to pick up other jobs in the current climate. Who'll pay their redundancy(60% of it will come from govt), who'll pay their dole(govt), who'll pay their mortgage payments(health board or whatever).

Enforcement of VRT rules is a positive development in these difficult times.

G-Money

So what happens if you are stopped and you are genuinely just visiting?

I have drove from the north to Dublin a few times over the last few months for job interviews and I haven't been stopped, but I'm wondering what would happen if I was.

I'm sure everyone they are stopping are just saying they are visiting, so how do they differentiate the genuine ones from the people trying to avoid paying VRT?

ojewriej

grandmaster wrote: »

I'm sure everyone they are stopping are just saying they are visiting, so how do they differentiate the genuine ones from the people trying to avoid paying VRT?

A polish friend of mine was stopped a while back, he was driving a car with polish reg. Guard asked him, whteher he is visiting, or is he here permanenlty. Mate said that he is visiting, and the guard went to his squad car for a while, came back and said:

"if you are just visiting, how come you have a PPS number and pay taxes for last 3 years?" And the car was taken from him.

Now, this friend has a tendency to exaggerate his stories, so I'm not sure how true it was with chcecking the PPS, but the car wes definitely taken from him for few days.

ambro25

grandmaster wrote: »

So what happens if you are stopped and you are genuinely just visiting?

Just make sure you carry the interview invitation and/or utilities bills/bank statements at your NI address (all recent/current, of course). And/or, like my Mrs, all ferry bookings/receipts with dates. Basically, enough to "prove non-residential status beyond a reasonable doubt" at the side of the road.

G-Money

Yeah well I always bring the interview invitation with me, but I'm living at home with the folks so I don't really have any bills being sent to me here at the mo.

-Chris-

Mailman wrote: »

VRT on personal imports is a nice money spinner for the government.

See below for facts:
http://www.cso.ie/releasespublications/documents/transport/current/vehlicm.pdf

Cool report, thanks for that.

Slightly OT, but I'm looking at table 2 on page 2. Does that tell me that more BMWs (for example) were imported and VRT'd than were sold through BMW Ireland?

Mailman

Would seem so.
The biggest secondhand imports are for the expensive marques like Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and VW which is why my guess of VRT payable at 4K is conservative I think.
Also on all the Jap imports they get Duty and VAT at 21% too.