Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many vehicles failed to pay vehicle excise duty in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what is the total cost to the Exchequer of this tax evasion.

More than 98% of vehicles are properly licensed and this demonstrates that the vast majority of motorists comply with the law. The vehicle excise duty evasion statistics estimated that around 755,000 vehicles in stock in the UK were unlicensed at the point of the survey in June 2017. It is estimated that this may potentially result in a loss of vehicle excise duty revenue of £107 million, a proportion of which will be recovered. The maximum penalty for using an untaxed vehicle if a case comes to the Magistrates Court is the greater of £1,000 or five times the amount of tax chargeable; or the greater of £2,500 or five times the amount of tax chargeable if using an untaxed vehicle and also having declared a SORN. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency’s enforcement action led to £41 million being recovered in the last financial year.