Some 63 per cent of motorists think the scrapping of paper tax discs will mean more people will try to dodge the law by not paying for their road tax, a new survey from RAC finds.

Although paper tax disks will become redundant on October 1, 36 per cent of drivers are unaware about the upcoming changes and almost half don't know when the shift is taking place, reports bbc.co.uk.

Around £35 million in revenue is lost each year due to the 210,000 cars on the road without tax - equivalent to about 0.6 per cent of all vehicles in Britain. RAC believes the amount of lost revenue could increase to £167 million a year once the tax disc changes take place. However, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has rubbished the claims.

A spokesman for the organisation said: "There is absolutely no basis to these figures and it is nonsense to suggest that getting rid of the tax disc will lead to an increase in vehicle tax evasion. We have a proven track record in making vehicle tax easy to pay but hard to avoid, with over 99 per cent of all vehicles taxed."

Tax discs are being replaced by a new electronic system in order to save money. Special cameras that can read number plates will be able to catch out any drivers who have failed to pay tax, which could result in the offender receiving a fine of up to £1,000, reports telegraph.co.uk.