According to the government, motorists are not paying enough for what they are costing the state.
If you own a car and use it on a regular basis, you must undoubtedly find that you are paying way too much. Fuel, tolls, insurance and sometimes fines, in short, having your own vehicle can sometimes be a real ruin. And this is not just an impression, because according to 40 million motorists, the automobile is the 2nd expense item of the French, just behind housing and before food. No wonder drivers feel like real cash cows! Moreover, as revealed by a study conducted by ACEA, automobile-related taxes have brought in no less than 86 billion euros to the State in 2019. Just that! However, it seems that this is not enough for the government, which finds that motorists are not profitable enough. No, this is not a joke in bad taste, but the observation of a report published by the Treasury Department.
According to this entity, attached to the Ministry of the Economy, cars and their use would in fact cost more to the community compared to what they bring back. Indeed, motorists would in reality cover only 36% of the expenses they generate, and this all types of vehicles combined. Because, as the report points out, not all road users are equal. In fact, utilities running on diesel would be the “deadbeat”, assuming only 28% of their cost, against 30% for diesel passenger cars and 45% for gasoline. On the other hand, diesel trucks would assume 68% of their cost, thanks in part to more severe pricing on motorways. Does all this surprise you? It should in fact be known that many costs are not borne directly by the drivers, such as accidents, pollution or the caps. Amounts which are then not amortized by the various taxes around the automobile.
Towards a tax hike?
Like the type of vehicle, the type of journey is also an element to be taken into account in calculating profitability. Indeed, if motorists pay more than the costs they generate when traveling on the motorway, they only cover 8% of spending in the city, all categories combined. To remedy this problem, the government already has some ideas, as the report underlines, which then recommends the establishment of purban floors. A measure already mentioned for many years but which has never been implemented so far in France. Another idea raised to charge users of vehicles running on diesel: the end of the tax advantage. For a time, the fiscal convergence between the two diesel and gasoline was then abandoned, while it had greatly participated in igniting the powders and triggering the movement of the Yellow Vests.
Several avenues would however be considered to increase the profitability of motorists, such as the ban on driving the most polluting vehicles in town. In fact, this is already the case in Paris and in several large urban areas via the Crit’Air sticker.
Also read on Auto-Moto.com:
Crit’Air sticker: how does it work? All the info
Motorways: the cheaper tolls in the event of works?
Radar cars: will they be reported soon?
