Who is exempt from the ULEZ charge? All the cars that DON’T need to pay £12.50 a day
- Read on to see if you will be exempt from paying ULEZ fees after its expansion
London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will be expanding to cover almost all of Greater London tomorrow, August 29 2023.
The expansion, which was first considered by Boris Johnson while he was Mayor of London, will be introduced by current mayor, Sadiq Khan.
The measures operate 24 hours a day and aim to improve London’s air quality by discouraging drivers of older, and more polluting, vehicles from visiting the capital.
Currently, vehicles that meet the ULEZ emissions standards do not have to pay a daily charge to drive in London.
But who is exempt from the ULEZ charge? Read on below to see if you will be exempt from paying ULEZ fees after its expansion.
London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will be expanding to cover almost all of Greater London tomorrow, August 29 2023
The expansion, which was first considered by Boris Johnson while he was Mayor of London, will be introduced by current mayor, Sadiq Khan
What year does my car have to be to avoid ULEZ?
To meet the ULEZ emissions standard, your vehicle must meet the required Euro emissions standard for your vehicle and emission type.
For newer vehicles, the Euro emissions standard may be listed in section D.2 of your vehicle log book (V5C).
According to the TfL website, the current ULEZ standards are as follows:
- Euro 3 for motorcycles, mopeds, motorised tricycles and quadricycles (L category)
- Euro 4 (NOx) for petrol cars, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles
- Euro 6 (NOx and PM) for diesel cars, vans and minibuses and other specialist vehicles
Most petrol vehicles under 16 years old or diesel vehicles under 6 years old already meet the emissions standards.
Lorries, vans and specialist heavy vehicles (all over 3.5 tonnes Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW)) and buses, minibuses and coaches (all over 5 tonnes GVW) do not need to pay the ULEZ charge.
The new measures have not been well received by everyone, and protestors gathered at the weekend (August 26) to voice their complaints
Who is exempt from ULEZ charge?
You can check if your vehicle is compatible with ULEZ regulations, using the free vehicle checker on TfL’s website.
All you need to do is enter your car’s registration number to check its compliance and the system will check its databases to determine if your car meets the standards.
Although TfL would ‘prefer you use a vehicle that meets the new emissions standards,’ drivers of cars more than 40 years old can apply for a rolling exemption from the fees.
In addition, all London-licensed taxis are exempt from paying ULEZ charges and vehicles built for specialist purposes, such as agriculture or the military can also apply.
To help disabled Londoners and community transport providers, whose vehicles are registered with the DVLA, prepare for the expansion, the existing ULEZ grace periods (temporary exemptions) have been extended until October 24, 2027.
Designated wheelchair-accessible private hire vehicles will also be exempt from ULEZ fees until October 26, 2025.
Drivers over the state pension age can apply for the extended grace period even if their vehicle isn’t registered with the DVLA, though they must hold a Blue Badge and be in receipt of Attendance Allowance.
You may be able to claim back ULEZ charges in some instances, for example NHS patients who are clinically assessed as too ill to travel on public transport, you may refunded congestion charges. Your hospital will tell you if you’re eligible.
A map showing the expansion of ULEZ, which will occur tomorrow, Tuesday August 29 2023
How much is the ULEZ charge?
ULEZ charges run each day from midnight to midnight, except on Christmas Day.
Anyone required to pay a charge can do so 90 days prior to their trip up to a maximum of three days after the journey they were charged for.
The daily ULEZ charge is currently £12.50 for cars, motorcycles, vans and specialist vehicles (up to and including 3.5 tonnes) and minibuses (up to and including 5 tonnes).
Drivers who do not pay a ULEZ charge could be at risk of receiving a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN).
To avoid being caught out by a PCN, you can set up Auto Pay via the Transport for London (TfL) website, which also bills you automatically for the congestion charge in the capital.
If your car isn’t exempt and you don’t pay the ULEZ charge on time, drivers will receive a £160 penalty, which will be halved if you pay the fine within 14 days.
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