Will Jaguar’s future electric vehicles be your company car choice for your telephony business?

As a Telephony business will Jaguar’s future electric vehicles be your company car choice?

The UK looks set to finish 2024 with a strong set of results for zero-emission registration. With the ZEV Mandate kicking in this year, there was some degree of nervousness and trepidation as to how we would be able to achieve this.

The potential obstacles for electrification of our transport seemed insurmountable at first, with barriers to entry including costs, availability, charging points and questionable manufacturer commitment. But the truth is that many of these points have now been addressed and more time and investment has been offered from various stakeholders to help see this mission through.

The political landscape needs to remain equally robust and consistent too. As reported in the GB News and the Telegraph there are calls on the Government to make petrol and diesel drivers pay more in order to help more of the UK move into BEV technology.

Tesla are believed to have lobbied Labour to make tougher taxation rules on those combustion vehicles which are polluting the roads. Further to this, William Brown, the MD of International Motors has called for the Government to help private individuals and consumers access electric vehicles through taxation policies on the petrol and diesel solutions. Carrot v Stick when it comes to regulations and policies is a difficult consideration for any Government.

While budget and public spending is finite, there needs to be some duty and responsibility on our policy makers to help deliver the necessary changes on a political, social and economic level.

Some frustration was perhaps generated when Labour failed to deliver on any of their intended promises to help make EVs more accessible and affordable for the UK. Indeed there was some negativity when the Government confirmed that those zero-emission vehicles will no longer enjoy their free of charge road tax (RFL) status.

Until now, any vehicles which emit 0g/km of CO” enjoyed free road tax and did not incur any of the luxury / expensive car tax supplement. In 2025, changes are afoot, with the Government now imposing a £10 annual charge for road tax on zero-emission vehicles.

Added to this, is that any car, regardless of emissions, will incur the £435 annual charge if this has a list price of £40,000 (or more).

This road tax supplement is payable in Year 2 through to the end of Year 6. Treating EVs like petrol and diesel when it comes to RFL is misleading and confusing for UK drivers, presenting an image that the future of EV is not quite as cost-effective as one would imagine. Plus, with many EVs costing beyond the £40,000, this is a disappointing move by the Labour Government.

Telephony business owner? - Understanding the Tax advantages of electric car leasing

For businesses like telephone and communications specialists, who operate as limited companies, there are still good reasons to go electric. Whether you offer connectivity network, mobile or security solutions, your successful telephony business should be reviewing its company car and van policy with clarity and vigour.

For zero-emission cars, any monthly rental under an operating lease is 100% deductible against Corporation Tax. With this now at 25% for most companies, being tax savvy via your vehicle fleet is incredibly important. For VAT-registered businesses, up to 50% of the VAT on the finance element and 100% of the VAT on the maintenance aspect can be recovered too (which is a nice benefit / saving over personal leases).

Any charge point investment you make at work is also tax deductible under the full expensing rules, which means 100% of the investment cost can be offset against Corporation Tax.

Where there is still real benefit is for the employees at your telephony business.

Staff retention and satisfaction is key so offering an EV scheme, whether company cars or on salary sacrifice, is a sage approach. When you receive a company car, which your employer may provide the vehicle / fuel / maintenance / insurance, there are still other financial considerations.

In the UK, HMRC apply Benefit in Kind (BiK) on any vehicles, with the car’s value (P11d), emissions and the employee’s income tax all relevant for the tax computations. The more polluting and more expensive your vehicle is, the higher the tax for the employee will be. EVs are driving the company car market, with the drivers saving literally hundreds of pounds per month in tax. So while you might not think this is worth noting, the finances do speak for themselves.

A manufacturer which is trying to re-invent the electric car market for your communications business is the incoming Jaguar EV range. The Type 00 - “future.vision” - is causing a stir for the UK media in December 2024. While very little has been confirmed, the British heritage brand is very different to what we may remember them as.