This Is Guernsey

By Joel de Woolfson

CUSTOMS will launch spot checks in the new year to make sure motorists do not dodge fuel duty. Scrapping road tax will see duty on petrol increase and a levy introduced on road diesel from 1 January.

Suppliers will then have to dye marine petrol blue and all non-road fuel diesel red so that the officers checking tanks can identify the two.

‘The States decided that the only diesel that would be charged duty would be diesel used on the roads,’ said Tony Robin, assistant chief officer at Customs and Excise.

‘They also decided that petrol for marine use would be at a lower rate of excise duty than the full rate put on road petrol.

‘Customs will carry out some road tests to make sure that people are not using marine petrol or red diesel in their cars.

‘It will be an offence.’

He said that people could be imprisoned for serious breaches.

‘But realistically, for minor infringements, it’s likely to be a fine and the vehicle can be seized.’

Some red-diesel fuelled vehicles will be able to take to the road.

‘These include tractors that are used for haulage and some building site vehicles like diggers and cranes that don’t carry goods,’ he said.

‘If there is a vehicle on the roads that carries people or goods they pay duty.’

Importers such as Total and Fuel Supplies will incur the cost of adding the dye.

Mr Robins said this is the standard practice in other jurisdictions where dye is needed for Customs to be able to battle fraudsters.

‘The fuel companies can either import their fuel already dyed or dye it themselves locally,’ he said.

‘This is the way it’s done everywhere else.’