DUTCH COMMON SENSE MAY HALT MOBILITY SCOOTER TAX

5.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 15th Apr 2008

A campaign against a new import tax on mobility scooters for disabled and older people may have been given a lifeline by a Dutch court ruling.

As from last year scooters made outside the European Union had a 10% import duty slapped on them, back-dated to 2004 following a World Customs Union decision to put mobility scooters in the same classification as leisure vehicles such as golf buggies, something that was missed by HM Revenue and Customs. The move has pushed up prices for local businesses and customers.

A Dutch court has now ruled that the reclassification was wrong, and tax demands to Dutch scooter importers should be reversed, a decision that may have implications in this country and across the EU.

LibDem Euro-MP Liz Lynne, who is Vice-President of the European Parliament's Disability Intergroup and has campaigned against the scooter tax, commented:

"These vehicles are a lifeline for many people who can't otherwise get around on their own. An extra 10% on these vehicles may well be pricing customers out of the market and leaving them housebound.

"Let us hope that this common sense decision in the Netherlands can persuade the UK government to change its tune. It is astonishing that their lack of planning led to a back-dated duty being slapped on these vehicles in the first place.

"This fight is far from over and we will continue to raise the issue with the Government and EU institutions to see if the classification can be permanently reversed. These vehicles are clearly not routine transport or indeed golf buggies; they are for people with reduced mobility and it is unacceptable that people who need them are penalised in this way."

ENDS

The situation originates in a World Customs Organisation decision several years ago to reclassify disabled mobility scooters as '8703 - motor vehicles for the transport of persons', necessitating a 10% import duty on any scooters from outside the European Union from 2004. They had previously been classified as '8713 - carriages for disabled persons' which exempted them from import duty.

UK customs remained unaware of this decision until last year, when it began to send out back-dated demands to importers, which placed some businesses in financial difficulty. This extra cost has had to be passed onto to dealers and customers.

The British Healthcare Traders Association (www.bhta.com) is fighting against the increase and estimates that the price of a scooter could increase by £250. They estimate the total back demands total some £10million.