German car maker Volkswagen that makes several popular luxury brands like Audi, Bugatti, Skoda and Ducati has warned car enthusiasts and current owners in Britain that price of its Porsche range of cars could go up by 10% after Brexit. The firm asked buyers to sign a clause that are awaiting delivery of their cars that they could be charged a potential tariff of 10% as a “precautionary” measure. The carmaker however has declined to comment if other brands under its umbrella would face the same prospects in future after Brexit.
The surcharge of 10% will push up the cost of entry level Porsche model 911 from £ 93110 to £ 102,421 while the price of its SUV range Macan and Boxster starts from £ 46000. The firm in an official mail to BBC stated that they expected Brexit negotiations to apply import duty of 10% on cars imported into the UK after March when it officially moves out of EU. In view of the upcoming circumstances they decided to warn their customers during sale that they may be asked to 10% more during delivery.
They declared that it was a precautionary measure in the interests of their customers to allow them to plan ahead and they needed more clarity on UK’s relations with EU. The firm stated that customers that have placed orders for Porsche cars before January 17, 2019 would not be affected by the tariff change but those that have done after that could be exposed to the tariff since the firm does not have a manufacturing facility in UK and all its products are imported. Like Volkswagen several EU car makers have expressed fear that tariffs could create problems for manufacturers in UK and importers when it leaves European Union by March end.
