On 28 October, Chancellor John Healey delivers his first Autumn Budget — and for drivers, this one matters more than most. Fuel duty, EV charging costs, car tax and the coming pay-per-mile regime are all on the table. Some decisions are already written into law. Others will be made on the day.

Here are the five things every driver should watch.

1. Fuel duty: the January rise that might not happen

Fuel duty has been frozen at 52.95p per litre since March 2022, when a temporary 5p cut was introduced. That freeze runs until 31 December 2026.

Under the timetable already in law, duty rises by 3p a litre on 1 January 2027 (to 55.95p), then by another 2p on 1 March 2027 (to 57.95p) — fully unwinding the 2022 cut. But the Budget can change that timetable, and there’s real pressure to do so: diesel averaged just over £2 a litre in the week of 12 October, the highest in government records, and the gap between diesel and petrol is the widest since 2003.

Accountancy firm BDO expects the January rise to be quietly shelved. Industry groups from the RAC to the Road Haulage Association want the freeze extended into a fifth year. Nothing is confirmed — 28 October decides it.

What it means for you: if the scheduled rises go ahead, that’s roughly £1.65 extra per 55-litre tank from January, before VAT — paid 52 times a year if you fill up weekly.

2. Public EV charging VAT: the 20% vs 5% gap

Charge your EV at home and you pay 5% VAT on the electricity. Use a public charger and you pay 20%. That gap is one of the most complained-about quirks in UK motoring, and a cut to public charging VAT — possibly to 10% — is reportedly under consideration.

It would particularly help drivers without driveways who rely on public chargers. One caveat: any saving depends on charging operators passing the VAT cut on to customers, which isn’t guaranteed.

3. Pay-per-mile tax: the detail moment

Separate from fuel duty, the mileage-based charge for electric cars is already law, not speculation. From April 2028, pure electric cars pay 3p per mile and plug-in hybrids pay 1.5p per mile, collected alongside Vehicle Excise Duty. For an EV doing 10,000 miles a year, that’s £300 a year — a cost that’s had almost no public attention next to the fuel duty debate.

What’s still undecided is how your mileage gets checked: odometer photos, MOT test readings, or a new online declaration. A government consultation on the mechanics closed in March 2026 with no final answer published. The Budget is the most likely moment for real detail — and if you’re thinking of buying an EV, it’s worth knowing before you sign. Our EV charging cost calculator already covers the charging side; the mileage charge will sit on top.

4. Car tax (VED): what already changed

This one isn’t waiting for the Budget — it already happened. The standard VED rate rose from £195 to £200 a year on 1 April 2026 (£210 if you pay monthly by Direct Debit), and the expensive-car supplement is £440 a year for five years on cars with a list price over £40,000 — £50,000 for electrics. That £40k threshold catches far more cars than it used to. Check what you’d pay with our road tax calculator.

5. Company cars and salary sacrifice: watch the small print

If you run a company car or an EV through salary sacrifice, Budgets have a habit of tweaking the benefit-in-kind tables and NIC treatment. Nothing specific is confirmed this time, but with record EV sales this autumn, any change to the maths lands hardest on drivers mid-lease. Our car finance calculator can help you re-run the numbers once the announcements land.

We’ll update this on Budget day

We’ll update this post on 28 October once the Chancellor has spoken, so what you’re reading stays accurate. If fuel duty moves, EV charging VAT changes, or the pay-per-mile detail finally appears, it’ll be here.