Why your MOT mileage history matters more now
The eVED tax note says mileage collected at annual MOTs "is available to view for most cars on GOV.UK" and that the government intends to use it "to ensure that user-supplied mileage is consistent and up to date". In other words, the readings already on your car's MOT record become the yardstick for what you declare to DVLA. The tax law will also set requirements for odometers, which are needed to bring eVED in.
Two practical points follow. Owners should check their car's recorded readings now: our free MOT history check and mileage check show every reading DVSA holds and flag gaps or drops. Buyers of used electric cars and plug-in hybrids should do the same before paying: a mileage record with gaps or a reading that goes backwards is a warning sign (see how to spot a clocked car). Our electric car MOT failure rates study shows how often each electric model failed its first MOT.
No, it did the opposite of what some had hoped. Electricity from chargers that are open to the public, or to employees at their workplace, is charged at the standard 20% VAT rate, and the Finance Bill will make that explicit from 1 November 2026 (paragraph 6.205). HMRC's tax note says these supplies do not qualify for the domestic rate (0% at the moment) even where the electricity is below the 1,000kWh a month threshold for deemed domestic use. Chargers that only the residents of a particular residential building can use are outside the new rule.
What the Budget did do on charging costs (paragraph 3.16 and the DfT announcement):
- £100 million over two years from spring 2027 to cut prices at local, lower-powered public chargers, the kind on residential streets where you leave the car for hours or overnight. They make up about a third of the network. The government estimates the average EV driver without home charging, who charges on the street, will save about £150 a year; the Budget's footnote bases that on 8,000 miles a year.
- A "tariff porting" taskforce to explore letting drivers use their cheaper home electricity tariff at certain public chargers. The government calls it a complex proposal that will take time.
- Philip New's independent review of public charging costs found prices have risen by 69% at lower-powered chargers and 94% at higher-powered chargers in real terms since 2021.
At today's prices, before eVED:
Our calculation at 3.5 miles per kWh (the RAC's assumption, as in our fuel cost calculator). Home: Ofgem cap unit rate 26.32p per kWh, 1 October to 31 December 2026, no VAT, standing charge left out. Public: Zapmap Price Index, September 2026 pay-as-you-go averages (updated 7 October 2026): standard and standard plus chargers are 3kW to 49kW, rapid and ultra-rapid are 50kW and above. Petrol: 174.57p a litre (DESNZ, week of 19 October 2026) at 45mpg.
| How you charge | Price | Per mile | 7,400 miles a year | 10,000 miles a year |
|---|
| At home, price cap tariff | 26.32p per kWh | 7.5p | £556 | £752 |
| Standard public chargers (3kW to 49kW, including on-street) | 54p per kWh | 15.4p | £1,142 | £1,543 |
| Rapid and ultra-rapid chargers | 79p per kWh | 22.6p | £1,670 | £2,257 |
| Petrol car for comparison, 45mpg | 174.57p a litre | 17.6p | £1,305 | £1,764 |
Charging at home costs less than half as much per mile as petrol. Relying on rapid chargers costs more per mile than a 45mpg petrol car even before eVED. From April 2028 add 3p a mile to every electric line: 10.5p at home, 18.4p on standard public chargers and 25.6p on rapid chargers. If home electricity VAT went back to 5% after 1 July 2027 at the same price before VAT, the home rate would be 7.9p a mile, but the price cap itself changes every quarter. Off-peak EV tariffs cost less than the cap rate shown here; Zapmap notes many drivers pay less than the pay-as-you-go prices through memberships and offers.
Our fuel cost calculator works this out for your own car, and our guides to electric car running costs and electric vs petrol running costs cover insurance, servicing and depreciation too.
- Registered from 1 April 2017: £10 in the first year, then the standard rate, which rises from £200 to £210 on 1 April 2027 (HMRC OOTLAR Annex A).
- Expensive car supplement: HMRC's tables describe it as £440 a year in years two to six for zero emission cars with a list price over £50,000. Electric cars registered before 1 April 2025 do not pay it.
- Registered 1 March 2001 to 31 March 2017: band A, £20 a year in both 2026-27 and 2027-28.
The free road tax calculator shows what any car pays by reg, including whether it pays the supplement. Every band for every car is in our Budget 2026 guide for drivers.
Source: HMRC OOTLAR Annex A and the company car tax note, 28 October 2026. Plug-in hybrid row is for cars emitting 1 to 50g/km with an electric range over 130 miles; shorter ranges pay more until 2028-29, when all 1 to 50g/km cars pay one rate.
| Tax year | Electric (0g/km) | Plug-in hybrid, 1 to 50g/km, 130+ miles range |
|---|
| 2026-27 | 4% | 4% |
| 2027-28 | 5% | 5% |
| 2028-29 | 7% | 18% |
| 2029-30 | 9% | 19% |
| 2030-31 (new in Budget 2026) | 10% | 20% |
On a £40,000 electric company car, 10% means a £4,000 taxable benefit: £800 a year for a basic rate taxpayer and £1,600 at 40% in 2030-31, against £320 and £640 at 4% now (our calculation, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates). The same car as a plug-in hybrid at 20% would cost £1,600 and £3,200. Company car tax will be collected through payroll from 6 April 2027.
- Check your recorded mileage with the free mileage check. It is the record your eVED declarations will be compared against.
- Work out your eVED bill from your real annual mileage: miles x 3p (or 1.5p for a plug-in hybrid). Your MOT history shows how far the car has gone between tests.
- Rely on public chargers? Watch for DfT's details of the on-street price cut from spring 2027, and compare networks: Zapmap's index shows wide differences between operators.
- Charging at home? VAT is 0% until 1 July 2027; an off-peak EV tariff is the biggest saving most drivers can make.
- Buying a used EV or plug-in hybrid? Check its MOT and mileage history free, then its finance, write-off and stolen records with the £4.99 history check, and get a valuation before you agree a price.
- HM Treasury, Budget 2026, paragraphs 2.38, 3.16, 6.204, 6.205, 6.207, 6.210 and 6.29.
- HMRC, Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED), tax information note updated 28 October 2026.
- HMRC, VAT and Climate Change Levy on electric vehicle charging, 28 October 2026.
- HMRC, OOTLAR Annex A (VED 2027 to 2028, company car tax) and company car tax note.
- GOV.UK, Cutting electric vehicle charging costs, and the cost of public EV charging review, 28 October 2026.
- Prices: Ofgem price cap, Zapmap Price Index, DESNZ weekly road fuel prices.
See What Your Own Car Costs After the Budget
Enter a reg for its free report: road tax band, fuel cost, MOT history and recorded mileage. Buying one? The full history check (outstanding finance, write-off, stolen) is £4.99.
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