Brit driver stung with £20k invoice on German autobahn after easy mistake
A British businessman was forced to pay almost £20,000 after being stopped by German customs police who discovered he had not declared his Aston Martin Vantage V8 at the border
(Image: UGC)
A British driver has been slapped with a nearly £20,000 penalty after being caught driving his high-end Aston Martin through Germany. The 56-year-old businessman – whose identity remains undisclosed – was pulled over by traffic police on the A96 motorway close to Lindau.
During questioning, officers discovered he had failed to declare the Aston Martin Vantage V8 at the border. He informed police he was simply transporting the luxury sports motor – the marque beloved by James Bond – from Switzerland to the Czech Republic as part of a house move, bringing it into the European Union.
However, the vehicle, worth £63,000, hadn’t been correctly declared for import. Customs officials worked out the outstanding import duty and VAT, informing him he owed an eye-watering £19,650.
When the shocked Briton couldn’t immediately settle the bill, officers confiscated the high-performance vehicle. The Aston Martin was only returned the next day once the complete sum had been paid, reports the Mirror.
German authorities have now initiated criminal proceedings against the motorist on suspicion of tax evasion. The Ulm Main Customs Office revealed it confiscated 184 vehicles last year for missing customs declarations.
According to a spokesperson, the motors had been imported into the EU without correct registration in what authorities termed “classic import smuggling”.
A spokesperson revealed: “Nearly €350,000 – around £300,000 – in customs duties and import tax was subsequently collected. Most of the vehicles came from Switzerland.
“The vehicles in all price ranges had been brought into the European Union without proper registration – classic import smuggling.
“Nearly €350,000 in customs duties and import sales tax were levied retroactively. Most came from Switzerland, many were transported on trailers, and some were driven on their own wheels. The main destination was Eastern Europe.”
Aston Martin has recently confirmed it will be slashing 20% of its workforce, with the company’s net losses soaring 52% last year to £493.2m. The luxury motor manufacturer, synonymous with James Bond, has battled difficulties for several years and blamed US president Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Aston Martin, which has its headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, employs about 3,000 people, meaning redundancies will total around 600.
The company said the redundancies should deliver annual savings of around £40m and did not specify when the cuts would be implemented, but said most of the savings would be made this year.
A spokesperson for Aston Martin said US tariffs had been “extremely disruptive” and demand had also been “extremely subdued” in China, the world’s biggest auto market.
