THE ROAD Transport Department yesterday hit back at accusations that they are rounding up prices for road tax renewals, saying people were unaware of how the price is calculated.
The Mail was contacted by a man who claimed that he was asked to pay an extra 62 euro cents since the introduction of the single currency.
Yiannakis Ioannou explained that he had paid £33 for a period of 12 months last year for his 1.4 litre vehicle.
“When I logged into their website to renew for 2008, I expected to pay €56.38, as this is the figure according to the official conversion rate, but to my surprise, I was asked to pay €57,” he said.
“I don’t begrudge the extra 62 cents but it is the principle of rounding up that I have a problem with. If the Road Transport Department rounds up the renewals of thousands of people, that is a lot of extra revenue and is a rip-off in my eyes, plain and simple.
“If the government doesn’t follow the law, then who will?” he wondered.
Upon hearing the accusations, the Director of the Road Transport Department said that road tax is actually calculated according to an index based on engine size.
“Yes, £33 converts to €56.38 but using our index for the cubic capacity of a vehicle, the price is actually £33.40 for a 1,400cc, which converts to €57.07,” said Soteris Kolettas.
“To the benefit of the consumer, this is rounded down to €57, which is exactly what the gentleman in question was asked to pay. There is nothing underhand going on.”
Motorists have until February 29 to renew their road tax. Since July last year, renewal forms through the post have no longer been sent out, with the RTD stating that vehicle owners must take responsibility for renewal before police checks begin on March 1.
Renewals can be done online at http://rtd.mcw.gov.cy, through the JCC website http://www.jccsmart.com, at co-operative and commercial banks, citizens’ advice bureaus and at the RTD itself.
Kolettas said the choice available “will make life so much easier for the public and this is very important to us.”
He added that paying online is, “easy, quick and secure. Just use your Visa, Mastercard or American Express cards and you can renew in less than five minutes.”
Vehicles that don’t have a valid MOT certificate cannot receive road tax renewals.
