The bullet is through the church, at least shots have been fired. The 'old-timer alliance' - consisting of FEHAC, KNAC, BOVAG, RAI and FOCWA - have reached an agreement with State Secretary Weekers.
A striking detail is, of course, that part of the alliance, the BOVAG and the RAI have been urging the government since the beginning of last year to overhaul the scheme for old-timers. So you may wonder why people have repented there now, or there are hidden agendas. Who now has what interest? The importance of the BOVAG and RAI is of course clear. But what is the importance of the KNAC in this? The KNAC has traditionally been a club for modern transport. But in recent years it has also moved towards the classic driver.
And why has the FEHAC not acted faster? The latter nevertheless represents such 70.000 classic enthusiasts as the umbrella body for most vintage car clubs in the Netherlands. Although we wonder to what extent people are still impartial here in recent years if they are sponsored for the big money by commercial parties. And why does Weekers say in his letter to the government that "a widely supported alternative has been supported by representatives of the old-timer industry" and why does the KNAC mention "under loud protest agreement" in its report? Who can we still believe?
Today, the proposal that Weekers has worked out with the alliance is being discussed by the Lower House. Then it goes to the Senate. So the bullet has certainly not yet passed the church. To the best of our knowledge. Do we still have to protest or give in? Because what are the consequences for the classic enthusiast?
Vintage cars that are on 1 January 2014 26 years old are covered by a transitional arrangement. Until they are 40. What does that mean? That means if your oldtimer is 25 years old on that date, you just keep paying taxes until he is 40. The transitional arrangement means a few things. You are not allowed to drive in the winter months, December, January and February. Are you doing that? That awaits you a hefty fine. It won't be tender. You may not suspend your car for at least a year if you accept the transitional arrangement. So if you have more cars or motorcycles, then you simply cannot drive it, or you simply have to pay taxes for everything, for at least a year. In this case, tax in the transitional arrangement is a quarterly rate with a maximum amount of 120 euros per year. That is not too bad, unless you have more than one classic car.
This transitional arrangement does not apply if your car is equipped with an LPG installation or runs on diesel. The first unless you rebuild the car and remove the LPG installation. This, in turn, only applies to cars. The idea behind this is that, according to Weekers, the condition to prevent daily driving is met, because "that almost always are diesel and LPG drivers," he says. Now that may be true, but someone who drives a diesel or LPG car is certainly not always a daily driver. That is how we think. Not that something is wrong with daily drivers.
Old-timers older than forty years are exempt from MRB. Unless of course the next year - after the whims of the government - changes again.