NIALL O'DONOGHUE,
Sir, - I must correct John Ballantine (January 22nd), who asserts that "Ireland is, and has been, the most expensive place in Europe to buy a BMW, or any other car for that matter, due to Vehicle Registration Tax".
Finland has a low pre-tax price on new cars, largely due to manufacturers' pricing policies. However, the Finnish government then imposes an import duty of 100 per cent on the value of a new car, plus VAT of 22 per cent. Thus, a new car worth €20,000 Euro at Finnish customs eventually costs €44,400 in the showroom. Even extra features, such as air conditioning, are individually taxed in Finland.
I agree with Mr Ballantine that this contravenes EU law - and Finland has been sued for same.
Finally, Finnish owners of diesel vehicles pay an annual diesel tax based on the weight of the vehicle, on top of paying the government-imposed fuel tax when tanking up! Obviously, Irish car buyers are not the worst off in the EU, by far. - Yours, etc.
NIALL O'DONOGHUE,
Narva,
Finland.