A vehicle fleet is every type of vehicle that a company uses for its operations. It includes any cars, SUVs, vans, pickup trucks, motorbikes, lorries, buses, coaches, forklift trucks, loaders, bulldozers, farm and agricultural vehicles, trailers, towable generators, aircraft, boats and (sometimes) bicycles.
What qualifies as a commercial vehicle for tax purposes?
Those that have a payload capacity of more than 1,000kg are considered light commercial vehicles and taxed in the same way as a normal van. However, not all pick-ups are classed as vans for tax purposes (the V5C certificate will tell you for sure - see What is classed as a van according to HMRC?
How to Write Off 100% of Your Car as a Business [STEP-BY-STEP] | Vehicle Tax Deduction | Sec. 179
Do I have to declare a company car?
In short, a company car is considered to be a benefit in kind (BiK). BiK are benefits that are not included directly in your salary but are still treated as taxable income. This means that the tax on your company car will usually be deducted from your paycheck and paid through PAYE (Pay As You Earn).
Since the vehicle you drive can make a big difference to car tax rates, typically you will have a more restricted choice of cars under a company car scheme. If your company car package includes fuel, you will also need to pay Car Fuel Benefit each month.
Although tax relief on new cars having CO2 emissions of 75g/km or less can be reclaimed in the first financial year, for all other cars relief will be spread over a number of years. However, with commercial vehicles purchased through a business, you can claim 100% tax relief in the year the vehicle is acquired.
Is a van 100% tax deductible? Yes, you may be able to claim the full cost of buying a van as an expense against your tax bill if your vehicle falls within the criteria for HMRC capital allowances.
A commercial vehicle is used for commercial or business purposes. Commercial motor vehicles (CMV) may transport goods or paying passengers. A commercial vehicle is often designated "commercial" when it is titled or registered to a company.
Land Rover Commercial is the ideal team player. With over 2,000 litres of flexible, hardwearing load space, a towing capacity of 3.5 tonnes and the latest Land Rover technology, even the toughest jobs look a lot less daunting.
Arguably the most common type of CV, a Panel van usually consists of a cabin for up to three occupants, with a large loading bay situated behind them. These vans typically offer excellent driving characteristics, making them easy to drive.
Light commercial vehicles are motor vehicles constructed to carry goods or specialised equipment that are less than or equal to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass. They include utility vehicles, panel vans, cab chassis vehicles and goods vans.
Is a Nissan Navara classed as a commercial vehicle?
Pick-up trucks (Ford Ranger, Toyota Hilux, Nissan Navara, etc.) The key thing for a pick-up truck to become a commercial vehicle is if the vehicle's payload is over 1000kgs. Most double-cab pick-ups have a carrying capacity over this, but you need to ensure it stays over this figure.
Can I claim for a van on my tax return? You can claim the cost of buying a van as expenses against your income tax bill, but how you do so depends on how you pay tax. If you use traditional accounting you can claim the van as a capital allowance.
The simple answer is, yes. But, you can't always claim in the same way. So, speak to your accountant before you buy a van for your business. Usually, you can claim the cost of your work van as a capital allowance.
For all other types of vehicle purchases, including vans, you claim an allowable expense (ie which HMRC allows you to deduct from your earnings via Self Assessment with other expenses to arrive at your taxable profit).
But should you opt for a company car or a company van? Company vans are taxed in a far more favourable way than passenger cars, in most cases. Both company tax relief and personal benefit-in-kind tax charges are more tax efficient for vans and, partly because of this, many business owners choose a van over a car.
Benefit in kind (BIK) tax is what employees of a business pay in order to use a car which is financed/owned by a company they work for. However, when you're self-employed there's no legal difference between you and your business.
So, unfortunately, there aren't many instances in which you are exempt from company car tax. One of the most common ways of ensuring you don't have to pay company car tax is to get cars that are simply 'pool' cars, or that are kept on site and used for business reasons only.
You can drive any vehicle in your business. If you want one that genuinely stands out, choose Land Rover. Innovative, dynamic and robust. If these are watchwords for your company, you'll no doubt want a fleet that's just as accomplished.
You must remember that when it comes to self-employment taxes, you cannot claim for buying personal items through your business. That means you'll only ever be able to claim the business portion of your car, no matter how you buy it.
If you use your own car or van for business travel, there is the statutory system of tax-free approved mileage allowances available. The maximum amount per business mile is known as the approved mileage allowance payment (AMAP). Your employer can pay or reimburse you up to these amounts on a tax- and NIC-free basis.
