Commercial Motor Tax‏

ncarroll

I have recently bought a Mitsubishi Pajero Sport 2.5 TD (Shogun Equippe).

It has windows in the back. To give you an idea, it looks llike this: http://photos.carlist.ie/photos/2927787/46d3a194-b0fa-46a2-8f47-8ced1e8a7f8c_large.jpg

I am a farmer, and mainly use it for agricultural purposes, i.e. a vehicle to assist me in farming activities. Can I register this as a commercial vehicle, or what is the procedure for this?

The tax is costing 935 euro which is HUUGGEEE!!! How can I 'avoid' paying such a large fee?? :eek:

Thank you in advance for your assistance.

cojomo2

unless the back seats have been removed permanently, then as far as I know, you cannot register it as commercial...

Delta Kilo

Yes, cojomo2 is correct, you have to take out the seats permanently (you have to weld up the bolt holes so they know you won't put them back in again), disable the electric windows in the back, get it weighed.

I may have missed something. You have to get a DOE test (similar to NCT) done annually after you register it as commercial. I think there are companies out there that provide this service but not sure on cost.

JohnThomas09

Delta Kilo wrote: »

Yes, cojomo2 is correct, you have to take out the seats permanently (you have to weld up the bolt holes so they know you won't put them back in again), disable the electric windows in the back, get it weighed.

you did miss something you have to Spray out the back windows.

david

You need to put steel/ply plates in rear side windows along with tint.

Disconnect the electric rear windows

Remove rear seats/belts and weld up mounting points

Put a flat floor in the back (ply)

Then you'll need to bring it to your local tax office for an inspection

BeardyGit

From first hand experience 6 weeks ago, dealing with Nutgrove motor tax office up in Dublin:

1. Remove the seats and seatbelts in the back, including all mounting brackets that are bolted in etc.
2. Fill the seat and seatbelt mounting points with weld - Arc is handy for this, and any local mechanic should be able to sort if for you if you don't have a welder handy....In fact, I'd leave it to a mechanic with the ECU's you'd have in your jeep etc.
3. Get a recognised weighbridge certificate - About €25 from Roadstone - You might have other accepted 'bridges nearby, so check with your local motor tax office which ones they'll accept a docket from. They'll tell you over the phone.
4. Book the jeep in for a DOE test. Bring the VLC and the weighbridge docket with you on the day. The center need these, at least the VLC anyway, and I'm almost certain I was asked for the weigh docket too.
5. Pass the DoE test
6. Go to the motor tax office and ask for the form you need at the information counter. They'll need your DoE pass docket, weighbridge docket, insurance certificate and the relevant form completed. There's a few quid charge for the DoE Certificate itself, which you get when you hand in your pass docket for that....
7. If the paperwork is good, they'll likely want to have a look at your jeep to see that the mounting points have been welded up. If they're happy with the way you closed them up (leave bare weld visible - you can grind and paint it later if you want), they'll take your paperwork and process a new VLC for you, showing Light Good Vehicle as the classification.....
8. Tax it for €288 renewal....

Notes:

You don't need to tint, carpet, remove, alter or in any other way stuff up the rear windows. That only applies if the vehicle is being imported and registered for the first time. Full VRT was in your case (and mine) paid on the vehicle as a passenger jeep, which means the whole re-classification is a function for the motor tax office alone, and they should not require you to blank out the windows....which is only raised by customs on import, not for a vehicle already registered here. Only the seats/belts should be of concern to the motor tax office, and if they do have a problem, you need to speak with someone else or visit another office.

You also don't need to weld in a full length floor, this again is only of concern on first registration/import, and is also only a matter raised by customs upon import/first registration as a commercial/LGV. If full VRT was paid on the vehicle as a passenger class jeep, this is not a requirement. To make it handier for me, I've now fitted a piece of trailer resin board bolted to the floor in the back, but that was done after having it inspected and approved at the motor tax office.

In each instance above, I have first hand experience in putting a vehicle with full clear glass all 'round and a normal steel floor with a footwell behind the front seats through the DoE and having it reclassified as an LGV at the tax office. No issues with either of these things, and you shouldn't have either.

Hope that helps,

Gil

Theanswers

Once you install the rear floor cover over the seating area would this not cover the bolt holes etc for the seats? Therefore there is no way of checking if this job is done or not...? Possibly i'm not sure of this,

Similarly for seatbelts, i know someone who just removed the upper part of the seat belts (bolts). But left the lower half in place, Out of sight however. Incase in a few years one might want too register it as an passenger.

tin79

From my experience of my father doing this recently Gil Dub is spot on. And as he said the tax office told us the whole window blocking and floor covering etc was only required for importation and VRT purposes.

There have also been a few posts on here lately about the legality or otherwise of using a commercial vehicle for non commercial purposes and that there may be a crack down on it. The official at the tax office, who is a friend of my fathers and seems well informed, told us that this is more aimed at people who tax jeeps etc commercially but then use the jeep in a way that would require private taxation, ie they put the rear seats back in and start carrying backseat passengers again. He said he felt this could be more inforced in future but that if you have a proper commercial (2 seater) then there would be no issue with you using it the odd time for non commercial purposes once you have things in order.

i asked him what he meant by this and he said that if you have a job that means you need a commercial vehicle (and so you have covered the specifics terms of your insurance) and its a 2 seater and properly taxed and had its doe then there would be no issue with you using it for private use such as bringing rubbish from your house to the dump or transporting dogs etc.

again he said the main issue was people taxing as commercial and then putting the back seats in again and as such using the jeep in a way that would require full private tax and private insurance.

I asked a local Guard and he said that was basically his understanding too.

Cmar-Ireland

I changed the tax class on my 4x4 a few months ago.

Removed seats, seat belts and all mountings.
Filled the holes with chemical metal.
Unplugged the rear electric windows.

And that was it.

No steel floor, blocked windows etc.

All you are doing is changing the tax class, so steel floors blocked windows etc are not required.

It's an afternoons work.

ncarroll

Thank you for your replies!!
:rolleyes:

Buying a comercial initially would have been the way to go

BeardyGit

RoverJames wrote: »

Buying a comercial initially would have been the way to go

Why? Please elaborate

argosy2006

RoverJames wrote: »

Buying a comercial initially would have been the way to go

exactly,,, why take seats out now ,, one with out seats would have cost a lot less,,,, so he paid for one with seat only to remove them?> just pay the road tax, or ,, correct me if i,m wrong,, u can leave the back seats in,,and just turn the rear part of jeep into a van,,put bulk head in behind rear seats,, then its a crew cab,, lots of vans have seats in them yet are commercial,,but u do have to tint the windows, GOD ONLY KNOWS WHY,,, BUT ITS IRELAND AINT IT!!!!!!!!!