GOOD NEWS Young drivers facing the mounting costs of taking to the road might well breathe a little easier after the government announced it was slashing the cost of obtaining a licence. The cost-cutting measure, which will see the price of a provisional licence fall to £34 from £50, was announced by ministers, who estimated it would save all new drivers in the region of £80m over the next decade. Other cuts coming into effect on 31 October include the costs of renewing a licence online every 10 years, reduced from £20 to £14, and a tachograph card used by businesses to monitor how far staff drive, which will fall from £38 to £32. Transport minister Claire Perry said: “The cost of driving, especially for young drivers, can be significant and we are committed to cutting costs where we can. Thanks to DVLA making large-scale savings to their running costs, we have been able to cut the cost of the driving licence which will save drivers and businesses £150m over the next 10 years.” The agency processes 1m “first licence” applications every year and the fees drop is expected to save new drivers £82.2m over 10 years, with more than 77% of these applications made by 17 to 24-year-olds. In addition 2.1m photocard licences are renewed every year, meaning motorists already on the road would save £61.3m collectively over a decade. Businesses make another 85,500 renewals a year and will save £2.44m over 10 years while the cost savings to tachographs will save another £3.58m over the decade. The chief secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, said: “Giving savings back to the taxpayer is a key element in this government’s drive for a stronger economy and a fairer society. That’s why we’re slashing the cost of getting a driving licence and giving it straight back to young people and businesses, saving £150m over 10 years.” The DVLA is carrying out a review of all fees, and other cuts being considered include vehicle first registrations and duplicate registration certificates. It comes after a report by AA Index this week revealed motorists are seeing the cost of taking out car insurance increase for the first time in more than two years.
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 08:53:44 +0000
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