ELECTRIC vehicle drivers are set to start shelling out for a pay-per-mile tax under Government plans.

It revealed today the new tax will come into force in April 2028.

Under the new system, drivers of fully electric cars will pay 3p per mile in tax, while owners of plug-in hybrid models will pay a reduced rate of 1.5p per mile.

Drivers will pay an upfront charge based on what they estimate their mileage will be.

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They’ll have the option to make monthly payments and officials will use mileage data collected during MOTs to make sure the figures are accurate.

But in a win for EV drivers, plans that would’ve forced drivers to have mileage checks have been dropped.

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A consultation launched in November last year set out plans for cars under three years old – which do not need an MOT – to be taken to an “accredited provider” around their first and second anniversary for mileage checks.

However the Treasury announced in its response to the consultation that drivers would no longer need to complete the mileage checks.

The system will instead rely on motorists providing accurate mileage estimates, with the first check carried out when cars have their first MOT after three years.

Balancing payments will be required at this point if the actual mileage exceeds estimates.

However, experts previously warned the tax could encourage more drivers to tamper with their motors’ odometers to reduce what they owe.

Ministers have also acknowledged the risk of mileage fraud increasing if charging is linked directly to miles driven.

The Government has said it’s introducing the new tax to make things fairer for petrol and diesel drivers.

If you own a petrol or diesel vehicle, you pay a similar tax indirectly when you fill up your car.

Fuel duty is charged on the sale of petrol and diesel, and is currently 6p per mile.

That’s much more than electric vehicle drivers will be paying through their pay-per-mile tax.

Currently, petrol drivers pay an average of £600 a year in fuel duty for driving around 6,100 miles.

EV drivers don’t pay a charging tax right now, but the new rules would see them pay an extra £300 for every 10,000 miles they drive.

The Government has previously said it will phase out the sale of petrol and diesel cars in a move towards electric vehicles.

Under the current plans, no new petrol and diesel cars will be sold in the UK after 2030.

The RAC estimates there are around two million electric vehicles on the roads now, along with around one million plug-in hybrids.

Toby Poston, chief executive of trade body the British Vehicle Rental & Leasing Association, said the Government has “taken some of the roughest edges” off its tax plans.

But he said you “can’t create a smooth switch to electric vehicles by making them more expensive to own”.

“The mechanics of the tax may have improved, but the timing is still wrong,” he said.

Meanwhile Tanya Sinclair, chief executive of lobby group Electric Vehicles UK, said the Government should do a better job of communicating its policies to drivers.

“We still have a mix of incentives, taxes, grants and policies which don’t clearly echo its vision of an all-electric future,” she said.