A SELF-employed Londoner spent £2,500 on a used car on the basis that it was ULEZ compliant, only to find out months later that it wasn’t.
Woolwich resident Mark Ward searched high and low for a cheap set of wheels that wouldn’t cost him £12.50 a day to use.
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The Transport for London (TfL) Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) first came into effect in April 2019 and charges drivers with non-compliant vehicles £12.50 a day.
Anyone who travels within the North and South Circular Roads has to pay up if their car doesn’t meet the minimum emissions standards set by the rules.
Mark told The Sun: “I was looking to purchase a used car in August 2020 and knowing the ULEZ extension was coming, I checked every car against the TFL database on their website.
He took screenshots confirming that each of the cars he looked at buying was ULEZ compliant just two days before making a purchase.
He said: “I finally purchased a Renault Koleos 2.0dci for just under £3,000.
“I took a screenshot to show that it met ULEZ and LEZ standards confirming that no payment would be required.
“But without any warning, I found that TFL had changed the status of my vehicle to not compliant months later.
“I then realised that I wouldn’t be able to drive more than a couple of miles without having to pay £12.50 a day.”
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If Mark, was to drive his car within the ULEZ zone for every working day of the year, the charge could have set him back £3,250 each year.
Worried that he’d wasted £2,500 on a car, he spent the next 12 months fighting his corner with TfL.
By October 2022 and after sending multiple emails to both TfL and the Mayor of London’s office, a TfL manager finally got in touch.
But after challenging the change and showing proof that the car was originally ULEZ compliant, Mark has now had the fee waived until he chooses to sell the vehicle.
He claims that TFL told him that the car was originally marked as ULEZ compliant because its vehicle data hadn’t been obtained by the DVLA at the point of purchase.
He said: “To me, this implies that TFL was making all cars compliant until they’ve obtained the emissions data from the DVLA.”
TfL did confirm that a vehicle’s compliance with the ULEZ is obtained from DVLA records.
However, this data is regularly updated and the governing body acknowledged that the messaging on its website check didn’t reflect this at the time of Mark’s purchase.
A TfL spokesperson said: “Mr Ward contacted us in 2021 and we resolved his query.
“Since then we have made improvements to the vehicle checker to ensure this doesn’t happen again and we continue to listen to our customers to ensure we are offering the best possible service.”
But after looking over Mark’s story, others in the motoring world argue that the ULEZ scheme should be scrapped outright.
A spokesperson for the Alliance of British Drivers said of the back of Mark’s story: “All congestion and clean air schemes like the ULEZ are blighted by complicated rules, and high-handed bureaucracy, leaving TfL to rake in more money in fines.
“The ULEZ and congestion schemes should be scrapped.”
If you’re buying a new car, make sure you check that it’s compliant with your city’s clean air zones.
For London’s ULEZ, visit the TfL website and input your car’s registration number.
Those living in Birmingham and Bristol can find out if their car is compliant by visiting Gov.UK.
Those living in Scotland should visit the Scottish government website.
What is London’s ULEZ?
TfL’s ULEZ scheme first came into effect in April 2019 and charges drivers with non-compliant vehicles £12.50 a day.
Those failing to pay the charge face penalties of £180 each time the charge goes unpaid.
The zone originally encompassed the same area as the Congestion Charge Zone in Zone 1.
However, the ULEZ area was first expanded in October 2022 to cover motorists driving within the North and South Circular Road.
But from 29 August 2023, the ULEZ is expanding across all London boroughs.
It’s estimated that the move will mean that a further 700,000 vehicles will be liable for the 12.50 daily charge, according to the RAC.
But TfL claimed that nine out of 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day meet the ULEZ standards, so will not be liable for the charge.
Petrol cars and vans that do not meet Euro 4 standards and diesel vehicles that don’t meet Euro 6 standards are most likely to face the ULEZ fee.
What other cities have clean air zones?
Bath, Birmingham, Durham, Oxford and Portsmouth all have their own clean air zones which charge motorists with non-compliant vehicles to travel within selected areas.
In Birmingham, motorists are charged £8 a day to travel within its clean air zone if their care doesn’t meet emissions standards.
Motorists travelling within Durham’s Peninsula Chargin Zone between 10am and 2pm Monday to Saturday are charged at a rate of £2 per day.
Those travelling within Oxford’s Zero Emission Zone can face charges worth up to £10 a day depending on the emissions of their vehicle.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
