Chainsaw Fuel Tax

[Justme]

i think even if you were successfull, the companies would seek to line their pockets by putting up their prices to compensate for the reduction in duty. When VAT was reduced to 15% did prices fall?I think not!!

 

As the largest cost is the duty the retailer could double the profit (profit not cost so a few pennies per L) & we would still be loads better off.

 

Oh & yes lots of prices did fall.

[Old WoodChip]

We should pay less or better still no duty on fuels like Aspen, but come on be realistic......

This is Britain where everything is taxed and we are all robbed and just put up with it because we always have been.

 

Good luck I hope your 100% successful with your mission.

[18 stoner]

Good on you, hope all goes as it should.

 

If there is some sort of petition we can sign let us know. Im sure the majority of members here will give support.

[John Russell]

Anyone into model r/c aeroplanes will know that the small engines employed in them were often "glow-plug" i.e. compression ignition engines so effectively a diesel. If they can work then I wonder why they haven't found their way into garden machinery???

 

Ditto

 

The UK market is very small compared with non-European markets where -- as I'm sure you all know -- the cost of fuel is often very low (or so it seems to us). North Americans think that diesel is only for trucks -- they are invariably astonished if you tell them as a Brit that your car or even pick-up is diesel. As a consequence the big international manufacturers, historically, have only tended to make gasoline (petrol)-powered equipment. Indeed, I think I'm right in saying that Honda and several other Far-Eastern manufacturers only make petrol-powered quads and lawnmowers for instance, and it's only recently that a few have started to make diesel versions as it's slowly dawned on them that there's a market for them.

 

Another reason diesel tends not to me used for small equipment is that petrol 2 strokes are a lot simpler (hence cheaper) and produce a lot more power for a given weight compared with alternative engines -- which is of course crucial with hand-held equipment.

 

The only reason I can see why a campaign to reduce the tax of alternative fuels for hand-held ag. or arb. equipment might fall on politicians' deaf ears, is that if as a result it becomes cheap, the treasury might be concerned that people will put it in their cars instead of their chainsaws. And the introduction of 'red petrol' might create a whole new tier of cost if it is to be policed.

 

However I wish you luck with the campaign.

 

Best wishes,

 

John Russell

[Adam Bourne]

i'm not into R/C cars or planes but i do know the fuel comes in 5,10 or even 20 litre drums, if its going to be such an issue about people putting the fuel in there cars, then why not try for a 2stroke mix of fuel in the above quantities.

 

great idea and hope it works.

[agg221]

There have been diesel chainsaws - 1950s I think, made by Comet and later by Jonsered. It was a 2-stroke semi-diesel, with a pre-heat required on the hot bulb. Apparently it worked very well but there was no commercial advantage at the time.

 

One thing that may be helpful on the duty question - canal boats often have diesel heating, cooking and engines. Prior to the introduction of duty on the fuel used in the engine, all were duty-free, so the boats usually only have a single fuel tank. When duty was introduced, the rule came in that you self declare the proportion of the fuel you use for cooking/heating vs. that for the engine, and only pay duty on the latter. This approach could equally be applied to petrol driven agricultural/arboricultural equipment. I think though that the much stronger argument with fuels like Aspen is that it's so much more expensive than pump fuel, and will remain so, that the only reasons for buying it are health or environmental related, and nobody is going to try to buy it as a cheap way to fill up their car! As such, it isn't going to make a dent in the government's coffers - maybe a few tens of £k a year at most?

 

 

 

Alec

Edited May 14, 2011 by agg221

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

I think you have a great chance of getting this one sorted, as you say, it is illegal taxation, and that alone will win the argument, and may even see a flood of backdated tax claims!

[18 stoner]

I have a neighbour who is a lobster fisherman and he claims back tax from the petrol his boat engine uses. Not sure if this is because its classed as offshore use though.

[morten]

When working in Norway I found that the fuel is tax free due to the health concerns of professional chainsaw workers and the forests we work in.

 

Same thing goes for Sweden (no duties), and Sweden is a EU member.

 

To politicians, it is always important pointing out that they are not the first to make a decision.

[morten]

Well done for starting this.

 

Is there going to be some kind of online petition form? if so then please forward it to myself and I will pass it on to all of our customers.

 

This is something we are working on but obviously it will work a lot better if its coming from the likes of yourselves and not from us directly.

 

please let me know if you require any further information from us.

 

Kind Regards

Axel Hildebrand

Aspen Fuels

 

Alex,

 

Could you assist by providing a breakdown of the current price of Aspen (and other alkylate) fuels?

 

i.e.

- Cost ex-refinery

- Tax/Duties

- VAT

- Wholesaler markup

- Retailer markup

 

That way, we can all see, what it would mean to the retail price if tax was reduced. 56p/litre reduction would likely reduce the retail price in the order of 100p/litre.

But the increased volumes generated by the lower price would likely make up for any reduction in wholesaler and retailer profits caused by the reduced unit prices.

 

Also, why don't you get in touch with Aspen, Sweden to see if you can get some materials from the political decision making regarding taxation of alcylate petrol, and pass that on to support the UK campaign.

Edited May 15, 2011 by morten
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