the price of a new television is 423. the price includes VAT 17.5%

Work out the cost of the television before VAT was added.
By the end of each year, the value of a television has fallen by 12% of its value at the start of that year.
The value of a television was £423 at the start of the first year.
b) Work out the value of the television at the end of the third year. Give your answer to the nearest penny.​

To work out the cost of the television before VAT was added, you need to divide the total price by 1 plus the VAT rate.

In this case, the VAT rate is 17.5%. So, you would divide the price of the television (£423) by 1.175:

Cost before VAT = 423 / 1.175
Cost before VAT = £360

Therefore, the cost of the television before VAT was added is £360.

Now, to work out the value of the television at the end of the third year, you need to apply the 12% decrease in value each year for three years.

To do this, you can calculate it step by step:

First-year value = Initial value - (Initial value * 0.12)
First-year value = £423 - (£423 * 0.12)
First-year value = £423 - £50.76
First-year value = £372.24

Second-year value = First-year value - (First-year value * 0.12)
Second-year value = £372.24 - (£372.24 * 0.12)
Second-year value = £372.24 - £44.67
Second-year value = £327.57

Third-year value = Second-year value - (Second-year value * 0.12)
Third-year value = £327.57 - (£327.57 * 0.12)
Third-year value = £327.57 - £39.31
Third-year value = £288.26

Therefore, the value of the television at the end of the third year is approximately £288.26.