MG4 Motability: order before the 1 July VAT change

News · 13 Jun 2026 · Michael Harrison

The MG4 Motability deal is one of the more sensible electric choices on the scheme right now, but the price you see today is the price for this quarter only. From 1 July 2026 the Motability Scheme starts adding VAT to Advance Payments on most new leases, so an MG4 ordered on the current price list before 30 June avoids a charge that lands on orders placed after that date. Here is what the MG4 costs on the scheme now, what genuinely changes in July, and whether it is still the right call.

Why the MG4 Motability price changes on 1 July

The change comes from the 2025 Budget, which removed some of the tax reliefs the Motability Scheme has long enjoyed. From 1 July 2026, the standard rate of VAT applies to the Advance Payment and to certain other charges, such as excess-mileage and early-termination top-ups, on most new leases, and Insurance Premium Tax applies to the insurance element. The detail is set out on the Motability Scheme changes page and in the government’s own note on reforming Motability tax reliefs. Crucially, it only bites on new leases and orders placed on or after 1 July; if you already have a car on the scheme, nothing changes until your lease ends.

The temptation is to call this a flat 20 percent rise, and several dealer pages have. We would not, because Motability has also made offsetting changes to the package rather than simply passing the tax straight through. So the honest framing is narrower: the Advance Payment you can lock today is the pre-VAT one, and ordering before 30 June is what secures it. The same clock is ticking on every model, which is why we have written about it for the Dacia Jogger and the Hyundai Tucson too.

What the MG4 costs on the scheme today

An Advance Payment is the one-off lump sum you pay at the start; your mobility allowance then covers the rest of the lease, the insurance, servicing, tyres and breakdown cover. On the current list, the MG4 EV Premium Long Range sits at £4,999 Advance Payment for standard recipients of the higher-rate mobility component, dropping to around £3,596 with the War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement, while lower trims like the Urban Comfort Long Range start nearer £3,499. For an electric family hatchback with a real-world usable range, that is competitive against the petrol and hybrid crossovers in the same Advance Payment band.

There is a separate EV sweetener worth knowing about. Motability covers the cost of a home chargepoint and standard installation for customers taking their first fully electric car on the scheme, subject to suitable off-street parking, with access to the BP Pulse public network as the alternative. That is a scheme-wide measure rather than an MG-specific promotion, so confirm it applies to your application rather than assuming it is bundled. If you are weighing the running-cost side, our look at the hidden running costs of an EV covers the charging maths that applies here too.

It is worth being clear about what that Advance Payment actually buys, because the all-in nature of the lease is where Motability earns its keep. The figure covers a three-year lease with insurance for up to three named drivers, servicing and maintenance, tyres, breakdown cover and road tax, with no separate bills to budget for. On a privately financed MG4 you would pay the deposit, the monthly finance, comprehensive insurance (often a four-figure annual premium on a new EV), servicing and tyres separately, and you would carry the depreciation risk yourself. The scheme rolls all of that into the mobility allowance, which is why a £4,999 Advance Payment on an electric family hatch can work out cheaper in practice than the headline suggests, particularly for a driver who would otherwise face a steep new-driver or young-named-driver insurance loading.

The trade-off is flexibility. A Motability lease is a fixed three-year commitment with mileage limits, so it suits a settled pattern of driving rather than someone whose circumstances are about to change. If you expect your needs to shift, or you want the option to sell, a conventional used EV bought outright may fit better even after factoring in the running costs; our look at which EVs hold their value is a useful sense-check before you commit a fixed allowance for three years.

What actually changes after 1 July, and what does not

Two things move alongside the VAT. The standard mileage allowance on new leases falls to 10,000 miles a year, 30,000 over a typical three-year term, and the excess-mileage charge rises to 25p a mile including VAT. Motability points out that around three in four customers drive within the new figure, averaging roughly 7,500 miles a year, so for most it is academic, but if you are a higher-mileage driver the new ceiling matters more than the Advance Payment. Order before 1 July and you keep the current package terms for the life of that lease.

What does not change: your eligibility, the all-in nature of the lease (insurance, servicing, tyres and breakdown stay included), and the cars themselves. The MG4 you order in late June is the same MG4 you would order in July; only the cost base shifts. For the wider context on whether the scheme can absorb any of this, see our piece on the July 2026 Motability VAT change, and if a zero-deposit option matters more to you, our zero Advance Payment SUV list is the place to start.

Is the MG4 Motability deal still worth it?

For a driver with off-street parking who covers under 10,000 miles a year, we think the MG4 is one of the stronger electric picks on the scheme this quarter. The Advance Payment is reasonable for the range on offer, the home-charger support takes the sting out of switching to electric, and ordering before 30 June locks the pre-VAT terms. The buyers who should pause are those without home charging, who lean on public networks and pay more per mile, and high-mileage drivers who will brush against the new 10,000-mile cap on any post-July lease.

If you want a closer look at the refreshed MG4 before you decide, the review below covers what the latest car is like to live with day to day, from the cabin to the real-world range that matters most on the school run and the motorway alike.

Where to check and order before the deadline

• Confirm the live MG4 Advance Payment on the MG UK Motability price list before you commit; quarterly lists move.
• Check your eligibility (higher-rate mobility component of PIP or DLA, or AFIP) and that you have at least 12 months of the award left.
• Ask your dealer to confirm the home-chargepoint support applies to your application, and that you have suitable off-street parking.
• If you do high mileage, weigh the new 10,000-mile-a-year cap on any post-July lease before deciding to wait.
• Get the application accepted by 30 June 2026 to lock current-quarter terms; read the official Motability changes page so there are no surprises.

Our take

The MG4 Motability offer rewards drivers who move now. We would order before 30 June if the car suits you and you have home charging, because you lock the current Advance Payment and the current mileage terms before the 1 July tax change reshapes both. We would not panic-order a car that does not fit your life just to beat a deadline; a slightly higher cost on the right car beats a saving on the wrong one. For most lower-mileage drivers wanting to go electric on a fixed allowance, the MG4 is a confident recommendation this quarter, with the single proviso that you sort out where it charges before you sign.