Every new rule & law change affecting UK drivers in December – including cheaper fuel, insurance change & new tech

MAJOR new rule and law changes including cheaper fuel, insurance change and new tech have been introduced this month.

Here is everything you need to know about the government's raft of changes affecting British drivers in December.

Advisory fuel rates

Advisory Fuel Rates (AFR) are set out by the government to assist businesses in reimbursing or being reimbursed for fuel costs of company cars.

Mileage rates apply when a company must repay an employee for business travel in a company car.

The new law, which was rolled out by the HMRC on 1st December, impacts anyone who uses a company car.

AFR has been made 1p cheaper.

This is because there will be no added fuel benefit charge for employees using the company car for private travel.

Advisory rates won't have to be used if the employee shows they have covered the full cost of private fuel by repaying at a lower mileage rate.

Rates are usually reviewed four times a year in March, June, September, and December.

Rates remained largely the same in September, with minor adjustments to cars of certain engine sizes.

HGV rules

From 31st December a full or transitional smart tachograph 2 is required on Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV).

The device is required in certain vehicles to improve safety and efficiency. It can also record a vehicle's driving time, speed, distance, and gauge other information about the driver's activity.

An analogue or digital tachograph is required for international journeys.

Car insurance premiums

A major change to compensation rules could see car insurance premiums fall by an average of £50.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is predicting premiums will drop by 5 per cent for drivers in England and Wales.

This comes after a report by the Government Actuary which announced new Personal Injury Rates (PIDR) from -0.25 per cent to 0.5 per cent.

The PIDR is used to determine the cost of damages to people who suffer long-term injury. It also influences insurers when they set premiums.

EV charge points

All new public charge points for electric vehicles 8kW and above deployed after 24th November 2024 must offer contactless payment.

The same goes for all public charge points of 50kW and above. This can either be via a public charge point or at a charging site.

Those who are non compliant could face a fine of up to £10,000.

The regulations have been put in place so consumers can easily  locate the right public charge point.

They will also allow drivers to compare prices across multiple public charge point networks.

Zero emissions vehicle mandate

This government policy has been enforced to help the UK transition to zero emission vehicles by 2035.

The scheme will lower the upfront and running costs of owning an EV of up to £2,500 for small vans and £5,000 for large vans until at least 2025.

Some £350 will be taken off the cost of homeplace charge points for people living in flats.

Technology and Decarbonisation Minister Anthony Browne said: "Alongside us having spent more than £2 billion in the transition to electric vehicles,

"Our zero emission vehicle mandate will further boost the economy and support manufacturers to safeguard skilled British jobs in the automotive industry.

"We are providing investment certainty for the charging sector to expand our charging network which has already grown by 44% since this time last year.

"This will support the constantly growing number of EVs in the UK, which currently account for over 16% of the new UK car market."