Drivers charged millions in Ulez expansion fines as petrol and diesel owners continue to be punished

The Ulez was expanded to cover all London boroughs on August 29, 2023, with many towns neighbouring Essex forced to pay the price for their non-compliant vehicles.

The breakdown of fines recorded by the FOI found that 109,276 were paid at the reduced rate of £80 or £90, generating £9.2million in income.

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An additional 26,215 fines were paid without the early payment discount, bringing in £6.2million. But notably,as of August 31, 326,573 PCNs (Penalty Charge Notices) remained outstanding, with a value of £81million, showing driver reluctance to pay the fines.

A further 217,011 open PCNs, worth £9.1million were still payable but not yet due with TfL expecting the number of paid fines to rise significantly over time, "as the representations and appeals process can take up to three months to complete".

Initially, warning notices were issued to allow for genuine mistakes when Ulez was expanded, but since September 26, 2023, full penalties have been enforced.

Since November 2021 543,622 PCNs have been issued to drivers with postcodes in Essex including Chelmsford, Colchester, Ilford, Romford and Southend-on-Sea.

The appeals process has seen a significant number of challenges to Ulez fines. Of the 543,622 finesissued, 52,556 representations were accepted, while 16,151 were rejected.

From the rejected representations, 3,805 appeals were made to London Tribunals. The outcomes of these appeals varied with 395 being allowed in favour of the appellant, 2,071 refused, 90 withdrawn by the appellant, while 1,006 were not contested by TfL.

The financial impact of Ulez has been huge on drivers with over £15million already collected and the potential for significantly more.

While many have paid their fines, the large number of outstanding and open PCNs suggests ongoing challenges for both drivers and TfL.

Ulez penalties are currently payable at £180, although the fee is reduced to £90 for payment within 14 days. To be Ulez-compliant petrol cars must meet Euro 4 emissions targets while diesel cars must adhere to Euro 6 emissions.

Petrol cars that meet the standards are generally those first registered as new with the DVLA after 2005, although cars that meet the standards have been available since 2001.

As for diesel cars, they meet the standards if first registered with the DVLA as new after September 2015. Electric cars and many hybrid models are exempt from the fines.

A spokesperson for TfL said: “If no charge is purchased a penalty is issued. As we must wait until the charge payment period has expired, and then carry out some verification before issuing a penalty, it is usually around five to seven days after the journey that the penalty is issued. When a PCN is issued the recipient has the right to challenge it by submitting representation to us.”

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TfL noted: “If no payment is received within 28 days a Charge Certificate is issued increasing the penalty to £250.

“This is followed by an Order for Recovery increasing the penalty to £258. It should be noted, prior to January 30 2023, Ulez PCNs were payable at £160, reduced to £80 for payment within 14 days, therefore, this data will include PCNs paid at both £80 and £90.”