Tax classification of flap: not a motor vehicle component or tyre accessory, so residual rate applies for unspecified goods.

Flap was held to be a commercially distinct article used inside a tyre, but not an essential component of a motor vehicle and not an accessory to tyres and tubes. The applicable test for an accessory required the article to be an adjunct, accompaniment, addition or supplementary item, and mere utility or improved use was insufficient. Because the rate chart specified tyres and tubes but omitted flaps, the omission showed no intention to tax flaps at the same rate as those goods. In the absence of a specific entry, flap fell within the residual category of unspecified goods and attracted the residual rate applicable for the relevant years.

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Issues: Whether flap is a component part of a motor vehicle or an accessory to tyres and tubes, and if not specified in the rate chart, whether it falls within the residual category of unspecified goods for the relevant assessment years.

Analysis: Flap was found to be used inside the tyre over the tube to prevent friction and improve longevity, but a motor vehicle can run without it, and it is neither an essential element of the vehicle nor a component of tyres and tubes. The applicable test for an accessory requires more than mere utility or necessity for effective use; an article must be an adjunct, accompaniment, addition, or something supplementary to the main article. Flap was treated as a commercially distinct commodity, and since the rate notification specified tyres and tubes but not flaps, the omission indicated that flaps were not intended to be taxed at the same rate as tyres and tubes. In the absence of a specific rate entry, the goods were held to attract the residual rate applicable to unspecified goods.

Conclusion: Flap is neither a component part of a motor vehicle nor an accessory to tyres and tubes, and in the absence of a specific rate entry it is taxable as unspecified goods at 7 per cent for 1981-82 and 8 per cent for 1982-83.

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