Electric vehicle (EV) users in Northern Ireland are calling for more clarity on what a new tax announced in the Budget will mean for those who regularly cross the border into the Republic of Ireland.
The tax for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles was announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves on Wednesday.
From April 2028, electric car drivers will pay a road charge of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid drivers will pay 1.5p per mile, with the rates going up each year with inflation.
But cross border drivers like Ciarán O'Doherty have been questioning how their miles outside of the United Kingdom will be tracked and paid for.
Mr O'Doherty lives just a mile from Londonderry's border with the Republic of Ireland.
He made the move to an EV last year thinking it was "the right thing to do".
Like many others in the north west he drives across the border "countless times in the week".
He told BBC News NI that the introduction of the new tax, raises a myriad of questions for EV drivers.
"What we need to know is, considering we are so close to Donegal, how will the miles we do outside of the north be taken into account?"
He would also like more detail on the concessions made for anyone doing a lot of miles on the other side of the border.
"If the tax is to pay for the roads in one jurisdiction, then surely travel outside of it can't be taken into account?
"Maybe something like the black box technology used by insurance companies might help give a fair and accurate reading of miles done in the north," he said.
Speaking to the BBC's Evening Extra programme, motoring journalist Jim McCauley said cross border concerns needed addressed.
"I think the most likely solution is because there are more electronic solutions in your car now than there are mechanical elements, that will come from the car itself and we know how accurate sat nav-can be.
"If we go sat-nav, the sat-nav will identify the boundaries as we cross the border.
"Everyone will know that if you have a sat-nav in the car it will advise you are crossing a border and it will actually define the territory that the owner lives in, so that the money goes to that particular area," Mr McCauley added.
Mark McCall, chair of the Electric Vehicle Association of Northern Ireland, said members had already questioned how miles driven outside the UK would be measured.
Mr McCall added that the new tax was "really premature".
"It's going to rely on the individual, I guess, with what miles they do," Mr McCall said.
He added there were "more questions than answers" for EV users.
"But we're already getting questions from members around things like miles in a foreign country – if they drive 2,000 miles across Europe, am I paying for those miles in the UK?"
Mr McCall said it was hard to be exact on the numbers of electric vehicles being driven in Northern Ireland as many are leased to Northern Ireland from companies in Great Britain.
He said his best estimate was "something like 40,000 or 50,00 vehicles with a plug in Northern Ireland".
"EVs are just 5% of vehicles on the UK's roads currently," he said.
"So introducing a pay per mile scheme, even in around two years time, feels really premature to us."
Drivers will pay the charge based on how many miles they drive from April 2028.
Motorists will have their mileage checked annually, typically during their MOT as is already the case, or for new cars, around their first and second registration anniversary, the Treasury said.
Payment will be integrated into the existing Vehicle Excise Duty system.
Under the measures, an electric car driver clocking up 8,500 miles in the 2028-29 financial year is expected to pay about £255 – about half the cost per mile that petrol and diesel drivers pay in fuel tax.
However, mileage readings will be based on in-vehicle odometers, which the government acknowledges can be subject to tampering, or "clocking".
It recognises that the introduction of the tax "may increase the likelihood of motorists choosing to clock their vehicles", and said it was looking at ways to mitigate this.
The government is now consulting on exactly how the scheme will work.
Shane Hagan is an electric car driver from Gilford, County Down.
He described the new tax on electric vehicles as a "slap on the cheek".
"I just hope it's not the start of something greater, making EVs essentially a cash cow for the government."
Mr Hagan said he was trying to do his "bit," adding that: "It certainly wouldn't encourage many others to move to EV.
"When you are trying to encourage people to move away from combustion fuel engines, into something that's more economical, you are then hit hard with a tax."
Jason Dear is originally from Scotland but now lives in Galway.
His EV is registered in the Republic of Ireland and won't be impacted by the new tax.
"Luckily in the Republic we don't have the tax yet, I think everybody is watching to see how it goes," he said.
"The loss of the revenue from not paying the fuel duty on diesel, it has to come from somewhere," he added.
Graeme Thompson, of Weev, an electric vehicle charging firm, said "the timing is probably disappointing, but not a big surprise in total".
He added: "We have analysed the numbers and we still believe it's significantly cheaper for a driver charging mainly at home.
"For most drivers it's still economically viable."
When asked about how the chancellor's plans would work in practice, Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn told BBC NI's Good Morning Ulster programme that "we'll set out further details".
He said as the UK moves from petrol and and diesel cars to more electric cars the the revenue that will be lost as a result must be replaced, adding that all cars have an impact on road surfaces.
In response, Mr McCall said: "If a senior member of the Labour Party can't give us the details, then it won't be a surprise that the rest of us are confused."
He added: "We're really at this consultation process at this moment from now until March next year.
"Our association will certainly be submitting something on that consultation
"At the minute there are more questions than answers."
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