The electric motorcycle is not going through its best moment. To tell the truth, the EV sector seems to be completely unraveling in Europe. Fundamentally for one basic reason in this whole matter: the lack of common sense. Voltaire said that “Common sense is the least common of the senses” and we never tire of proving, over and over again, that this is so.
Specifically our politicians, who have practically gone from forcing the population to buy an electric vehicle (and if not asking anyone who lives in a big city), to withdrawing all aid and exemptions for this sector, as is the case of the government Dutch. It seems that the electric motorcycle is no longer so important, not if you have to finance its purchase with everyone’s money.
The electric motorcycle in serious danger in Europe
And to tell the truth, it is totally understandable, taking into account that those taxes that some stop paying for the purchase of an electric motorcycle, the rest of the citizens have to pay in any other way. Or someone had believed that this money is delivered on account by the ECB just because. So now, all those brands that were promised tax advantages over the traditional sector are literally going to hell.
Basically, because they are running out of financing or their investors flee directly fearing the worst. And probably the latter, the worst, is yet to come, both in the electric motorcycle segment and in any other segment related to plug-in vehicles. Something that is not new, on the other hand, and that has been rumored for several years as a possibility that could become a reality.
Already in 2022, Jeremy Hunt, Minister of the Interior of the United Kingdom government, announced that all electric vehicles would be subject to a circulation tax from the spring of 2025. For its part, Switzerland was also considering a tax at the same time. per kilometer to electric ones. But make no mistake, ecology, the environment or the health of each and every one of us does not matter here.
The core issue of the matter is the drop in tax collection in different areas, and that is why they must look for new sources of financing. The colossal financing of the states is increasingly difficult to maintain and the only solution that the governments in power find, including that of the Netherlands, is to squeeze the taxpayer’s pocket as has never happened before.
That is why now buying an electric motorcycle in this country will mean a very notable increase compared to what was paid until 2024, since the exemption from the BPM(tax on the acquisition of new vehicles calculated based on the emissions they emit). Specifically and as explained by The Pack:
“A company car that does not emit CO₂ is not subject to the BPM tax, while a passenger car that does not emit CO₂ pays a fixed amount of €667. On the other hand, an electric motorcycle pays a BPM tax of 19.4% of the list price (minus €210), regardless of its emissions. For a list price of €25,000, this represents a BPM tax seven times higher than that of other vehicle categories.”
And continues: “From January 1, 2025, the Yamaha Tracer will maintain its retail price of €16,299. On the other hand, the Energica Experia will see a significant price increase, going from €30,451.80 in 2024 to €35,010 in 2025. This increase of €4,559 is solely due to an increase in the vehicle acquisition tax (BPM). ”
This means that the electric motorcycle market in the Netherlands will most likely implode this year, taking away many of the brands that currently operate in the country.
We have already seen in 2024 how firms in the sector such as Fuell, Energica, Cake or Arc Motorcycles have declared bankruptcy and the trend, it seems, will continue along the same path in 2025 for other relevant firms in the sector.
