HCOS1450 | Introduction: fuel for excepted vehicles and machines

From HM Revenue & Customs · Hydrocarbon Oils Strategy

Certain types of vehicles and machines, when being used for a particular purpose, can use rebated fuel (like red diesel). These are known as 'excepted machines'.

The types of vehicle that can use red diesel are:

vehicles designed to operate on a railway
mowing machines
agricultural vehicles
special vehicles
unlicensed, including SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification) vehicles

Agricultural, special, and unlicensed vehicles can only use rebated fuels when being used for qualifying purposes, for example:

for agricultural, horticultural, aquatic farming, or forestry
on land maintained by a community amateur sports club (CASC)
on a golf course or driving range
on land occupied by a travelling fair or travelling curcus

Not all the qualifying purposes apply to all the vehicle types.