SEAT BELTS ... 602's thoughts.

[w3526602]

Hi,

I'm keying this, on the strength of my memories from 50 odd years ago, so do your own research.

Legislation was brought in, in 1962, that required all new "cars" to be "fitted" with mounting points for seat belts. This was achieved by welding captive nuts to the appropriate locations.

About the same time, I read a Parliamentary reply,(Hansard? RoSPA's "house magazine", or somewhere?) stating that seat belts would NOT be subject to Purchase Tax, the same as babies feeding bottles, and "STs" (ask your Mum!). At that time seat belts were an optional extra, fitted by the Dealer. 

I think it was 1965, that new legislation was introduced, requiring new car to be sold with seat belts already fitted. That meant they were now part of the car, so included in the Retail Price, and added into the Purchase Tax valuation, which continued, seemlessly into VAT.

Sometime about then, HMG introduced a "Car tax", which meant we were paying tax on tax.

Feel free to rip the above apart, if you know better.

When I met Barbara, she was a Purchase Tax Assessor, with Custom's and Excise. (With the right to park my car, in the Kingsbeam House car park for free, at the North end of London Bridge. She married me, resigned, and joined me in Malaya ... just in time in time to miss all the promotions that followed the change from Purchase Tax to Value Added Tax.

Barbara was also able (then) to fit into Marks & Spencer's "children's clothing", which also was exempt from Purchase Tax.

OT, but my daughter was a VAT Inspector, in Kennington, South East London, not the sort of place you would want your daughter, travelling alone, visiting traders who would rather not be visited. She is now a Bank Manager (Business) in Milton Keynes, and seems to have similar responsibilities to some Dick Francis heroes. When I was filling my skip (see earlier mail), she produced a friend , "something in finance", who had wielded a big shovel in a previous existence. Yikes, he could move some "spoil", but complained that my shovel was too small.

602

602

Barbara was also able to fit into Marks & Spencer's "children's clothing", which was exempt from Purchase Tax.