Changing vehicle category

kelbal

Hi guys,
I've just picked up on the fact that I've been over-paying for my CVRT for the last few years, €111 instead of €93. It tranpires that my motorhome was reistered as a commercial vehicle when it was imported to the country, about 10 years ago, and thats why I was being charged the extra. Its a standard motorhome, not a self-build, conversion, or anything like that, so don't know how that could have happened.
It seems that I need to get onto the Dept of Transport to get it reclassified. I'm just wondering could there by any down-side, or something I'm not thinking of? Moving from commercial to motorhome, they're not going to come after me for underpaid VRT or anything?

thanks in advance

niloc1951

kelbal wrote: »

Hi guys,
I've just picked up on the fact that I've been over-paying for my CVRT for the last few years, €111 instead of €93. It tranpires that my motorhome was reistered as a commercial vehicle when it was imported to the country, about 10 years ago, and thats why I was being charged the extra. Its a standard motorhome, not a self-build, conversion, or anything like that, so don't know how that could have happened.
It seems that I need to get onto the Dept of Transport to get it reclassified. I'm just wondering could there by any down-side, or something I'm not thinking of? Moving from commercial to motorhome, they're not going to come after me for underpaid VRT or anything?

thanks in advance

The first and only question.
Is it taxed as a Motor Caravan (€102 per year)

If it is, then it's a motor caravan (camper,/ motorhome) and according to the RSA website SEE HERE you should have been charged €93.16, including VAT.

You need to go about getting the overcharge refunded, it should pay for a tank of diesel

BTW, will you explain what you mean by "registered as a commercial vehicle", what indicated that.

autumnalcore

If it says camper on the book cant see how they could chase you for vrt. Probably just a discrepancy when entered on the NVDF.

kelbal

Checked my vehicle registration cert - and its down there as a Motor Caravan alright - don't have the motortax details in front of me, but €102 sounds about right.
Looks like some discrepancy somewhere along the way - when I'm booking it in for the test on cvrt.ie, its coming up as a Light Commercial Vehicle - so trying to find the right person in whatever department\agency to amend this is the task at hand

niloc1951

There's an ongoing problem at Revenue, it appears.
Some plonky who doesn't know his/her job is constantly assigning the EU Vehicle Category, listed at (J) on the Registration Certificate, as Category N1 which is 'Goods Vehicle not exceeding 3,500kg GVW' to Motor Caravans instead of correct EU Vehicle Category M1, see Revenues own website HERE

I would strongly suspect that in your case you will see N1 filled in after (J) on the registration cert for your camper, let me know if I'm right. If I am you need to get it corrected as it could also effect toll and other charges where goods vehicles and campers (private passenger vehicles) are different.

The end result is that when the National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF) is consulted in relation to the vehicle it shows up as a Goods Vehicle.

kelbal

niloc1951 wrote: »

I would strongly suspect that in your case you will see N1 filled in after (J) on the registration cert for your camper, let me know if I'm right..

Yep - N1 is listed, well spotted.
Who is it I contact - the CVRT section of the RSA, the Dept of Transport, Revenue?

thanks a mil

kelbal

kelbal wrote: »

Yep - N1 is listed, well spotted.
Who is it I contact - the CVRT section of the RSA, the Dept of Transport, Revenue?

thanks a mil

Seems like I have to get onto revenue in wexford. Am I risking getting a big bill loaded onto me? If its was originally registered as category N1 (Goods Vehicle), and now I'm changing this to M1, could they potentially whack me with a large bill for unpaid VRT from when it was imported originally?

niloc1951

kelbal wrote: »

Seems like I have to get onto revenue in wexford. Am I risking getting a big bill loaded onto me? If its was originally registered as category N1 (Goods Vehicle), and now I'm changing this to M1, could they potentially whack me with a large bill for unpaid VRT from when it was imported originally?

No additional bill, the vehicle was originally VRT'd as a Motor Caravan (camper) which is how it is on the Registration Cert at (D.3) Body Type and (J.2) Motor Taxation Class as Motor Caravan, so the correct VRT for a Motor Caravan would have been paid.

As I said in my earlier post, it's just some plonky in Revenue who doesn't know his /her job and is putting the wrong category down as EU Vehicle Category, this is a very very common problem.

therightangle

kelbal wrote: »

Seems like I have to get onto revenue in wexford. Am I risking getting a big bill loaded onto me? If its was originally registered as category N1 (Goods Vehicle), and now I'm changing this to M1, could they potentially whack me with a large bill for unpaid VRT from when it was imported originally?

Apologies for raising this 2 years later but wondering did you manage to get this sorted? Thanks

kelbal

therightangle wrote: »

Apologies for raising this 2 years later but wondering did you manage to get this sorted? Thanks

Hiya, I was getting a whole lot of people saying "Not my department", but then all of a sudden a new cert arrived in the post for me one day. You just need to keep hounding Revenue \ Motor tax section until they sort it for you.

therightangle

kelbal wrote: »

Hiya, I was getting a whole lot of people saying "Not my department", but then all of a sudden a new cert arrived in the post for me one day. You just need to keep hounding Revenue \ Motor tax section until they sort it for you.

Thanks Kelbal, I think I have the same issue.
Motorcaravan on tax/registration (€102) but commercial on Licensing cert.
I guess in the meantime its a matter of keeping to truck speed limits, and paying slightly more for cvrt, tolls and maybe ferry?
Hopefully I can get it sorted.

niloc1951

therightangle wrote: »

Thanks Kelbal, I think I have the same issue.
Motorcaravan on tax/registration (€102) but commercial on Licensing cert.
I guess in the meantime its a matter of keeping to truck speed limits, and paying slightly more for cvrt, tolls and maybe ferry?
Hopefully I can get it sorted.

Your motorhome IS NOT an N1 commercial vehicle, the Reg Cert has a mistake like so many.
Speed limits are set by Vehicle GVW, not EU Category.
As for tolls, it's whatever a motorhome is (same as a car in UK & Ireland)
CVRT is as set out HERE, no argument.
Ferries have their own priced for motorhomes.

The error in the Reg Cert is only likely to cause trouble if you come to the notice of authorities when in a foreign country and when organising the payment of automated tolls in certain European countries.

therightangle

niloc1951 wrote: »

Your motorhome IS NOT an N1 commercial vehicle, the Reg Cert has a mistake like so many.
Speed limits are set by Vehicle GVW, not EU Category.
As for tolls, it's whatever a motorhome is (same as a car in UK & Ireland)
CVRT is as set out HERE, no argument.
Ferries have their own priced for motorhomes.

The error in the Reg Cert is only likely to cause trouble if you come to the notice of authorities when in a foreign country and when organising the payment of automated tolls in certain European countries.

Thanks Niloc1951... so you reckon the speed cameras in Ireland are applying the motorhome/car speed limits (ie. what the motorhome is taxed as) rather than the van/commercial speed limits (what the CVRT disc says (N1))?

Thats the main concern Id have about it for the next while, no plans to go abroad (Im in the process of buying it as my first motorhome).

Thanks for your help.

kelbal

therightangle wrote: »

Thanks Niloc1951... so you reckon the speed cameras in Ireland are applying the motorhome/car speed limits (ie. what the motorhome is taxed as) rather than the van/commercial speed limits (what the CVRT disc says (N1))?

Thats the main concern Id have about it for the next while, no plans to go abroad (Im in the process of buying it as my first motorhome).

Thanks for your help.

Mine was on the wrong category for years, and the only real consequence was that the cvrt test fee was about €20 more than it should have been. I wouldn't worry about anything else

Del2005

therightangle wrote: »

Thanks Niloc1951... so you reckon the speed cameras in Ireland are applying the motorhome/car speed limits (ie. what the motorhome is taxed as) rather than the van/commercial speed limits (what the CVRT disc says (N1))?

Thats the main concern Id have about it for the next while, no plans to go abroad (Im in the process of buying it as my first motorhome).

Thanks for your help.

The speed limit is based on the weight of your vehicle not it's classification.

https://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/going_abroad/ireland/speed_limits_en.htm

therightangle

Del2005 wrote: »

The speed limit is based on the weight of your vehicle not it's classification.

https://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/going_abroad/ireland/speed_limits_en.htm

Thanks, I was wondering how speed cameras know your GVW as Niloc posted above, makes sense now that I think about it!

I guess it means so that if your campervan needs a C1 licence to drive it, for instance because its GVW is over 3.5t, say 3850kg for example, then you are restricted to a speed limit of 90kmh on motorways and 80 on standard primary routes... good to know

niloc1951

therightangle wrote: »

Thanks Niloc1951... so you reckon the speed cameras in Ireland are applying the motorhome/car speed limits (ie. what the motorhome is taxed as) rather than the van/commercial speed limits (what the CVRT disc says (N1))?

Thats the main concern Id have about it for the next while, no plans to go abroad (Im in the process of buying it as my first motorhome).

Thanks for your help.

Goods vehicles of EU Vehicle Category N1 are by definition vehicles not exceeding 3,500kg GVW and are treated the same as cars regarding speed limits.
It's category N2 which are over 3,500kg GVW that are subject to HGV speed limits.