Large Goods Vehicles: Taxation

Double Cab Pick Up vehicles (DCPUs) have been treated as goods vehicles for tax purposes, rather than cars. Following a judgement by the Court of Appeal, Double Cab Pick Ups must be treated as cars, rather than goods vehicles, for certain tax purposes, based on their primary suitability.

The government has no plans to legislate to treat DCPUs as goods vehicles as this would depart from the broader principles underpinning the Court of Appeal’s judgement, and be a significant tax break worth hundreds of millions per year.

The transitional arrangements mean that this will not affect the capital allowances treatment of any business that already owns a DCPU, or that purchases one before April 2025; and businesses that purchase a DCPU after this date will still be able to deduct the cost from their taxable profits at 18% or 6% per year. Under the transitional arrangements for Benefit-in-Kind, anyone who has accessed a DCPU before April 2025 will not be impacted until the sooner of disposal of the vehicle, April 2029 or when their lease expires. The Government has no plans to legislate to postpone the changes. However, there are alternatives to DCPUs (such as Single Cab Pick Ups) that are still treated as goods vehicles.