HMRC data reveals growth in company car drivers

July 1, 2024

The total number of reported recipients of company car benefit was 760,000 in the 2022/23 tax year, up 40,000 from the previous year after figure had been in steady decline from 960,000 in 2015/16.

HMRC’s annual publication provides a breakdown of HMRC’s taxable benefits in kind statistics for company cars (and company car fuel).

Figures for tax year 2022 to 2023 are based on an early extract of electronically captured data on car benefits. Income Tax and NICs figures for that year are also based on projections of the Survey of Personal incomes (SPI) for tax year 2021 to 2022. HMRC says these figures are provisional and subject to revision in future publications.

Other key points in the released data include:-

The total taxable value of company car benefit was £3.60 billion in tax year 2022 to 2023 down from £3.95 billion in 2021 to 2022
the number of reported fuel benefit recipients was 50,000 in 2022 to 2023 the same as the previous year, although there has been as steady decline from 240,000 in 2011 to 2012. The shift towards electric powered cars is expected to be in part behind the decline in fuel benefit use
in tax year 2022 to 2023, only around 2% of company cars had reported CO₂emissions in excess of 165 g/km. By contrast in 2002 to 2003, 58% of company cars had reported emissions in excess of 165 g/km
the average reported CO₂ emission of company cars including electric cars was 71 g/km, compared to 86 g/km in the previous tax year. For cars with internal combustion engines the average was 99 g/km
diesel cars account for 23% of company cars in 2022 to 2023 following a steady decline from 80% of company cars in 2017
the number of reported recipients of company cars with CO₂ emissions of 75g/km or less was 369,000 (up from around 243,000 in the previous tax year). Fully electric cars account for 29% of car benefit recipients
the total taxable value of all Class 1A taxable benefits in kind was £9.1 billion, an increase of £0.7 billion from the previous year

You can access the full report here.