VED rates for pre- March 2001 classics increased by £10 The increases in the VED rates were announced in an earlier budget statement in 2018 in the House of Commons. Understanding VED exemption See our guide note & flowchart Vehicle tax Direct Debit payments The webpage on the GOV.UK website sets out the details: Set up a Direct Debit You can set up a Direct Debit when you tax your vehicle online or at a Post Office. You do not need to be the vehicle’s registered keeper to set up a Direct Debit. Emails and letters about Direct Debit payments are sent to the account holder. How much it costs The amount you pay depends on how often you want to make a payment. There’s a 5% surcharge if you pay: monthly or every 6 months. There’s no surcharge if you pay yearly. https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax-direct-debit Posted: 190411 & updated 190414 The Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rates for cars built after 1st January 1979 and first registered before 1st March 2001 increased by £10 a year from 1st April 2019. So now the annual VED rate for an RV8 has increased to £265.00 (or £278.25 if paid as monthly or 6 monthly DD instalments) and the six month rate to £145.75. Vehicles made before 1st January 1979 are eligible for VED exemption from 1st April 2019 and become VED exempt following an application to change the tax class of the vehicle from PLG to Historic. See the webpage on the GOV.UK website Martin Cridford reported that "Interestingly I have just re-taxed my RV8 on 1st April after its winter SORN and paid £267.75 by '12-months' DD and not £278.25 noted on the GOV.UK website for cars first registered before 2001. Fortunately Max Porter was able to clarify the matter saying "I too paid £267.75 for 12 months by Direct Debit. I taxed my car a couple of days before 1st April for a start date of 1st April. Last years 12 month rate was £255 and with a 5% surcharge for Direct Debit this equals £267.75. It appears that by applying just before 1st April we were charged last years rates. Seems like a good plan to me! Max Porter subsequently provided a useful clarication based on his experience of an online road tax renewal for his RV8: "It clearly states on the DVLA website that there is a 5% surcharge for direct debits if you pay monthly or 6 monthly but not for a single 12 monthly payment. I set up a monthly Direct Debit straight from my current account, as the surcharge was applied there, presumably charges will still apply if paying monthly by Debit card. Paying monthly remains a good option though as I tax my RV8 from 1st April until 31st Oct (7 months) and the extra cost involved is minimal over this period. It saves shelling out the full £265 and having to claim back for the unused part of the year. SORNing the car at the end of October automatically cancels the Direct Debit. I have done this for the last 2 or 3 years now and it has worked well".