Car registered as a bus!

It’s cheaper to tax a bus by far then a car.... wtf is that about ?

It’s a weird dumb country this sometimes.

Mercedes S350

It's obviously taxed as a SPSV which is a taxi/hackney or limousine.

No issue, fairly normal

Strumms wrote: »

It’s cheaper to tax a bus by far then a car.... wtf is that about ?

It’s a weird dumb country this sometimes.

Most countries tax public transport vehicles more cheaply than private vehicles. The reasons for this are obvious, if you give it a moment's thought.

Presumably though the OP can't continue to tax it at that rate unless he's actually working as a taxi/hackney driver?

Peregrinus wrote: »

Most countries tax public transport vehicles more cheaply than private vehicles. The reasons for this are obvious, if you give it a moment's thought.

I don't see why a motorhome or tractor should be cheaper to insure than a lot of bigger engined cars. Even my mam's 1.4 petrol automatic Opel Mokka cost more to tax than a Scania truck...

Whatever about a bus, taxis though? My old neighbor's had new enough 5 series, big Mercs or Audi's. Taxi drivers clearly aren't hurting.

Strumms wrote: »

Not quite.

A bus is a revenue generator.....

The owner / operator has more ability to pay then a car owner whose car is not generating a cent, it exists as a cost only.

Public transport vehicles are on the road for multiple more hours of the day, inducing wear and tear etc... so I’d simply expect them to pay their fair fûcking share, which they can, just don’t...

A motor tax is not meant to be a motorized vehicle deterrent fee..

Ability to pay is not the issue. If it were, the tax would be graduated according to the income or wealth of the owner, not to the characteristics of the vehicle.

Motor tax is generally an attempt to recover, from road users, at least a part of the (very considerable) cost of providing and maintaining the roads. It's broadly graduated according to the amount of wear and tear a vehicle causes to the road, and to other demands associated with the vehicle.

On that view, of course, a bus should be taxed much more heavily than a car, since a bus weighs much more than a car. So why doesn't that happen? Because (the thinking is) a bus displaces car journeys. The wear and tear on the road caused by the bus is dramatically less than the wear and tear that would be cause if all the journeys made in the bus were made in private cars. Plus, the bus has much less requirement for parking associated with the journeys it makes, and the provision of on-road parking for private vehicle is a significant expense.

This is less true of the taxi, but still somewhat true. Hence the generally favourable motor tax rates for PSVs in Ireland and elsewhere.

Motor tax is not, as you say, meant to be a motorized vehicle deterrent fee. But in the developed world it is mostly tailored to the public policy objective of disincentivising private motoring and encouraging public transport.

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Perhaps the previous owner was one of those rural types who weirdly refer to a car as 'bus'.

'She's a lovely bus'
'He got a new bus'
'That's some bus he has'

I always took that to mean a car that's big or has presence myself.

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

Yes you can. I did it last week. You don't even need to have physically received the VRC.

Once the VRC has updated at the back-end (check the "change of ownership" section on the motor tax site), go online and request a new PIN, enter the details (address etc) that will now match the VRC and a PIN will be sent to your email.

Login and pay as normal.

HOWEVER, given that the OP will not be using the car as a taxi/limo there are definite issues here around the rates and probably insurance. If he gets stopped or has an accident it could cost him a lot more than the proper tax rate.

You can't as I've literally tried to do the same thing and it states this vehicle is not eligible for online motor taxing and directs you to a RF100a form

It doesnt work for SPSV, Goods vehicles etc.
What you describe only works for private vehicles

maestroamado wrote: »

Well the last 3 vehicles i taxed for the first time i did on-line.
I notice down the page said different for bus etc...

Absolutely.
It's only for private vehicles, i've done the same myself.


Other classes (SPSV, Island, Limo, Goods, etc) cannot be taxed online at the change of ownership and must be taxed using RF100A via post or in person at the (currently closed) tax offices

Gumbo wrote: »

Is a limo/SPSV motor tax not €90?

Limo,taxi,hackney and school bus are all €95

Lord Nikon wrote: »

SPSV motortax is €94.

If you just look one post up,you'll get the correct information.