Since April 2002, HMRC has accepted that the treatment of double-cab pickups for income and corporation tax should follow the rules for VAT. Double-cab pickups were therefore treated as vans across the taxes, provided the payload (gross vehicle weight less the unoccupied kerbside weight) was one tonne (1,000kg) or more.

There is no change to the VAT treatment, but from April this year the treatment of expenditure on a double-cab pickup changed for benefit-in-kind and capital-allowances purposes and for income tax and corporation tax the payload of a double-cab pickup no longer determines whether the vehicle should be treated as a car or a van. A double-cab pickup’s primary purpose is not the transportation of goods and therefore for income and corporation tax it will be treated as a car.

So, the tax rules have become much less favourable making double cab pickups less attractive but the VAT rules have not changed. Many people like the flexibility of the double cab pickup and the fact that you can still reclaim the VAT will mean that they remain an attractive option, just not quite as attractive as before.