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UK expands fuel economy label to include used cars

by Xavier Navarro (RSS feed) on Nov 3rd 2009 at 6:54PM

The UK's Minister for Transport, Sadiq Khan, has announced a new color-coded label that would help identify the most fuel-efficient cars right in the showroom. This label will also include information about the car's CO2 emissions, estimated fuel costs over 12,000 miles and MPG. This label was created by the British Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) and, although it's not mandatory yet, 94 percent of British car dealers have signed up to display it on new and new-ish cars. That's right, these labels are designed not only for new cars, but for used vehicles as well, with information available for cars dating back to 2001 (check the mock-up here). Dealers can register to use the system either individually at www.vca.gov.uk or through their manufacturer. Read full press release after the jump.

[Source: DfT]


PRESS RELEASE:

Transport Minister Sadiq Khan launches used car fuel economy label

2nd November 2009: A colour-coded Used Car Fuel Economy Label was today launched by Minister for Transport Sadiq Khan. The label provides consumers with clear 'at a glance' information on the running costs, fuel consumption and environmental performance of used cars available from participating dealers. The initiative builds on the success of the new car fuel economy label, which is now widely recognised by consumers[1].

The used car label is a voluntary initiative for dealers, developed by the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP) with support from the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI), the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) and the Government.

The scheme was launched to the automotive trade in early August and so far over 1,000 dealers have signed-up with the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) to take part and display the label on cars that they sell.

The colour-coded label provides easy to read information on a car's make and model along with its CO2 emissions, estimated fuel cost over 12,000 miles and MPG[2]. Dealers can choose only to label cars up to two years old, or to label older cars manufactured as far back as 1st March 2001. 94% of dealers signed-up to date have said they intend to label cars dating back to 2001. Sales by private individuals are not covered by the scheme.

Minister for Transport Sadiq Khan MP said at the launch "Running costs and environmental performance are increasingly important to new and used car buyers. I am therefore delighted that the new car label is now joined by a similar used car label.

This will give people the information they need to make the right purchase for themselves and the smart purchase for the environment. I hope as many dealers as possible will participate and I encourage used car buyers to look out for the label when they consider what to buy."

LowCVP Managing Director Greg Archer said "94% of dealers now display the new car label while 71% of car buyers say the label is important in informing their choice of car. The introduction of the used car label now extends this information to used car buyers."

The used car label is also available to motor industry information providers, with HPI the first company to provide its own approved version.

The used car label has been warmly welcomed by both the AA and What Car? magazine.

AA President, Edmund King said "Motorists are fighting back against high fuel prices by choosing more fuel efficient cars, in fact 62% of our AA / Populus panel say when buying another car they would choose a more fuel efficient one. However, used car buyers are currently kept in the dark regarding fuel efficiency when looking at used cars on dealer's forecourts. In an AA / Populus panel survey 91% supported a fuel economy label on used cars so with this launch they will be better informed about future running costs)"[3].

What Car? editor Steve Fowler said: 'Now more than ever, car buyers want reliable information on the running costs and environmental impact of cars they're looking to buy – a used car economy label gives them precisely that. We know that new car buyers find the new car economy labels tremendously useful, so we hope even more used car dealers will sign up to this excellent scheme".

"Through their approved used car schemes, vehicle manufacturers account for a significant proportion of used car sales so have an important role to play in supporting this initiative," said SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt. "The new car label has proved a successful way of informing buyers about the environmental performance and this extension into the used car market will allow even more buyers to make better comparisons and informed buying decisions."

RMI Director Sue Robinson said "The RMI supports the new 'Used Car CO2 labelling' programme as it better informs retail customers about used car running costs. Therefore the RMI is urging all used car dealers to sign up to this scheme."

Filed under: Etc., Legislation and Policy, UK

Tags: color label, ColorLabel, fuel label, FuelLabel, Sadiq Khan, SadiqKhan, used car fuel economy label, UsedCarFuelEconomyLabel

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