Transport for London (TfL) is cracking down on drivers who persistently evade penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued for Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) contraventions.
A cohort of people who refuse to pay multiple PCNs means that a significant amount of debt remains outstanding, which could be reinvested into improving the transport network for the benefit of all Londoners.
TfL is tripling the number of people in its investigations team to boost the work with enforcement agents to target those in polluting vehicles that refuse to pay the daily charges. Boosting its intelligence-led approach will be used in tandem with other enforcement action including the ability of bailiffs to visit an evader’s address, clamp a vehicle, remove a vehicle and sell it at auction. This is in addition to the further fees that evaders accrue when they do not to pay the fine within the statutory time limit.
TfL Image – Clamped vehicle
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On 29 August 2023, the Ultra Low Emission Zone expanded London-wide to help tackle the triple challenges of air pollution, the climate emergency and traffic congestion. In London, around 4,000 premature deaths are attributed to toxic air each year, as well as increased risks of asthma, cancer and dementia. Air pollution also disproportionately affects poorer Londoners, and those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. Any income generated from the scheme is being reinvested back into public transport, including improving bus routes in outer London. The scheme is not designed to generate revenue, as TfL wants all cars to be compliant.
The latest data shows that over 96 per cent of vehicles seen driving in the zone comply with the emissions standards, meaning the vast majority of drivers do not need to pay the daily charge. TfL’s cameras check the number plates of vehicles driving in the zone, and if no charge is paid for a non-compliant vehicle within three days of the journey taking place, and no Auto Pay arrangement is in place, a penalty charge notice (PCN) is sent to the registered keeper. If a vehicle’s registered keeper does not pay the penalty, it is registered as an unpaid debt and an order made for its recovery. If still not paid this leads to a Court-issued warrant, and enforcement action to recover the outstanding debt.
If a registered keeper ignores a warrant, bailiffs visit their address to recover money owed. In July, a driver with 45 warrants against them was traced by TfL agents to a new address. They claimed that they no longer owned the vehicle, but TfL’s investigations team established that the PCNs were received before the vehicle was sold. The driver settled their balance of almost £16,000. Another repeat offender with 21 warrants against their vehicle was visited multiple times by TfL enforcement agents and made a series of payments to settle their outstanding debt of over £7,800.
Enforcement agents also have the power to seize particular belongings of the debtor, and use the proceeds to satisfy any outstanding debt. In August, a car was located, seized and removed after ignoring ten warrants. The driver in question had been issued with a total of 43 letters and been visited by bailiffs five times previously. Between August 2023 and July 2024, 1,429 cars were seized and removed by bailiffs. Between August 2023 and July 2024, 761 seized cars were auctioned, recovering £710,147 of debts accrued by the minority who refuse to pay the ULEZ charge.
TfL encourages anyone who has received a ULEZ penalty charge to engage with the notice. Staff work proactively with the registered keeper to reach a solution, including setting up payment plans where appropriate, to make fines owed more manageable, and signposting to charities and resources so that they can directly seek any assistance they need.
