A new colour-coded environment label for all new cars began appearing in UK car showrooms from July 2005, with most vehicle manufacturers having adopted the new label from 1 September 2005. A further additional band “G” was added on 23 March 2006.

The consumer-friendly label has been designed to help car buyers assess the climate change impacts of different cars. It will also emphasise that - increasingly - better environmental performance means lower road tax and lower running costs.

The new label - that has been introduced years ahead of likely EU legislation - is the result of a voluntary agreement by car makers following discussions with environment groups and other road transport 'stakeholders' under the auspices of the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP).
For more information on the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP), please follow this link: http://www.lowcvp.org.uk/

The new fuel economy label is intended to be familiar to consumers as it mirrors important aspects of the design and colour-coding of the energy efficiency labels that now appear on most 'white goods', such as refrigerators.

The gradations on the label are also consistent with the CO₂ bandings used for Vehicle Excise Duty ('road tax') to ensure that the environmental message is backed up by a clear fiscal signal: lower carbon emissions = lower road tax. The label also provides clear running cost information showing that lower carbon, 'climate-friendlier' vehicles are cheaper to run.

Availability
Vehicle manufacturers will have made arrangements for their dealers to produce the label, either through in-house systems, or by adopting VCA's Point of Sale (POS) system. Franchised dealers who are unclear about producing the label should contact their manufacturer in the first instance. Non-franchised dealers should contact VCA who will be pleased to help.

For further information about VCA's Point of Sale software:
Paul Cooke, VCA
Phone : 0117 9524126
Paul.cooke@vca.gov.uk

Paul Stephens, VCA
Phone : 0117 9524106
Paul.stephens@vca.gov.uk

Example label