We have recently been notified of a substantial price hike for Tradesperson's vehicle access permits effective January 2, 2024. The following letter addressing this matter has been sent to the Department of Infrastructure (DOI), and we are currently awaiting their response.
Construction Isle of Man (CIOM) has been contacted by a number of contractors regarding the recent decision to increase ‘Tradeperson’s vehicle access permits’ fees by 600%.
As the trade body representing the Island's construction industry CIOM is concerned that we’ve had no involvement in any discussion relating to the fee rise. In addition, CIOM has received no formal notification of the increase which, we believe, is scheduled to come on 2nd January 2024.
One of the primary concerns is the lack of consultation with stakeholders in the construction industry. A decision of this magnitude should ideally involve a collaborative effort between the Government and representatives of the affected sectors. Such consultation would allow transparency and enable the concerns of businesses to be taken into account, contributing to a more equitable and sustainable solution for all concerned.
The construction industry, like many others, operates within a framework of carefully managed overhead costs. Parking permit fees are a significant component of overhead expenses, and this sudden and substantial increase of 600% is unprecedented. This sudden spike in operational costs places an immense burden on many businesses in our sector, many of whom are already grappling with economic challenges in recent times.
We do recognise that there has been no adjustment in parking permit fees for the past ten years, and DoI will have experienced increases in printing and production costs over such a long period, but such a dramatic rise in fee is unreasonable and falls outside the normal inflationary uplift across the last decade.
The construction industry plays a vital role in the Manx economy, especially the smaller organisations and sole traders who keep their overheads to a minimum to enable them to keep trading. The decision to increase the fee for the parking permits by 600% is likely to have far-reaching consequences in terms of client costs and availability of trades.
We urge you to reconsider the implementation date of the increase, to enable us both to enter into meaningful dialogue with representatives from the construction industry. This will enable information sharing, achieve a better understanding of the impact and explore possible mitigations or alternative solutions to suit both of our needs.
Please may we ask you to look into this matter and we look forward to the opportunity for constructive discussions to help mitigate the unintended consequences of a sudden and substantial increase in parking fees.
Yours sincerely
Construction Isle of Man