Something is Very Wrong with COE System...

[Sabian]

The COE quota decides the price. Not the other way around.

[BengGaBoy]

I think the easiest and fastest manner is to remove the "French bidding" system.

 

Basically all bidders pay what they bid for. That means for every single bidding exercise, all bidders may each pay a different price for their COE.

 

For example (in the current system), in last COE exercise, CAT A was S$90K and this round time, the bidder decided to place a bid of $200K knowing that he/she may end up paying $100K yet it help to secure a COE. Hopefully with the removal of "french bidding" system, it helps to discourage such behaviour.

[1fast1]

The COE quota decides the price. Not the other way around.

 

I don't know why people seem to have such trouble with the concept.

 

One thing, though: with the COE in place, the gahmen has no business levying ARF and other import and registration taxes. *This* fixed tax is sheer profiteering by the gahmen. Now that there's a marvellous free-market tool called the COE in place, the gahmen should scrap all the other taxes except the usage taxes. The take-home price of a new car should become OMV + COE + dealer profit margin.

 

Of course, the efficient market hypothesis pretty much guarantees that, at least initially, the COE price will immediately shoot up to take up the "slack" from the ARF and other taxes that have been removed. To moderate this somewhat, I will reiterate some of the suggestions from others that I actually think are good:

 

1) COEs should be paid for in cash.

 

2) COEs should be bid for by the buyers, not by the dealers.

 

3) COEs should be linked to a buyer's NRIC, not a car's VRN. If a car is sold or scrapped by the buyer before the decade is up, he is entitled to buy another car and drive it for the remainder of the duration, following which he either has to give up the car or bid for another COE at prevailing rates. Voluntary interim rebate of remaining COE amount is allowed only with a suitable penalty (e.g. 10% of the original quota premium deducted from the prorated rebate) - this still has to be in place to allow for people who genuinely need to stop driving in Sg, e.g. those who want to emigrate.

 

With regard to usage taxes, we really should go to a proper usage-based system (which I've posted about before). If those become good enough to control congestion, we can even look into removing all ownership taxes (including COE). We do need to solve the potential parking concerns if that's done, but there are models for that, like in Japan.

[RadX]

how many bloody coe threads you wanna open? might as well call this my COE forum....WTF

 

 

thread locked.....go discuss in the other thread....