Prior to 1993, excise duty was chargeable when such cars were removed from warehouse and generally this would occur immediately before delivery to the buyer. Since the beginning of 1993, when the VRT system was introduced, VRT on new cars is chargeable at the time of registration. VAT has always been collected on sales of new cars. For these reaons, new car registrations, rather than imports, provide the most useful measurement of activity in the new car market. New car registrations and estimated total Exchequer receipts therefrom for the years 1990 to 1994 are as follows: