A jaw-dropping £218 million is still owed in unpaid ULEZ fines across London, according to official data. The figures were revealed through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, which showed that over 1.3 million penalty charges (PCNs) were issued to drivers between September 2023 and April 2024.
However, Transport for London (TfL) confessed that a whopping 70 per cent of these fines – amounting to hundreds of millions of pounds – are yet to be paid. In an astonishing case, one driver has racked up over 200 fines for a single non-compliant vehicle, but hasn’t paid a penny of the £47,682 they owe.
The FOI data also disclosed that only £28.5m has been collected in fines so far. ULEZ, or ‘ultra low emissions zone’, was extended to cover all 32 boroughs of London in August last year. This means drivers across the capital face a daily charge of at least £12.50 if their vehicle doesn’t meet emission standards.
READ MORE:Hillingdon mum left traumatised after ULEZ vandalism ’causes car accident’
In response to the FOI request, TfL stated that from September 26 last year to April 26 this year, a total of 1,348,938 ULEZ PCNs were handed out. These PCNs start at £180 but can be halved to £90 if settled within two weeks.
TfL confirmed that drivers have paid 282,448 PCNs, totalling £28,539,158. Yet, TfL also admitted that a staggering 948,590 PCNs – 70.4 per cent of all fines adding up to a colossal £218,316,553 – remain unpaid by motorists. This leaves around 120,000 fines, which TfL confirmed had been cancelled.
Transport for London (TfL) declined to provide figures on the costs incurred from repairs due to deliberate damage and vandalism of their cameras, which have been a target for ‘blade runners’ since the ULEZ expansion last year. These vandals, often armed with power tools, have taken aim at cameras particularly in the outer London boroughs.
The ULEZ initiative first kicked off in April 2019 and saw another expansion in October 2021, followed by a further enlargement in August 2023.
Self-professed parking fine expert Barrie Segal expressed shock at the number of unpaid ULEZ fines, saying he was ‘astonished’ by the figures. Segal, who runs ParkingTicketExpert.com and AppealNow.com and has authored several books on contesting fines, went on to say, “I’m certainly surprised and would be interested to know how many of the PCNs have been appealed, how many have not and how many have gone to the adjudicator.”
Segal, whose expertise has been showcased on Richard & Judy, encouraged motorists to appeal fines, especially on technical grounds, as TfL might cancel the ticket just to avoid potential disputes. He said: “People don’t want to take it on, but there are some technical issues you can fight on. If you fight on a technical issue, TfL sometimes make a decision to say, ‘Just in case the motorist is right, we’ll cancel the ticket’. If you think a fine’s unfair because it wasn’t clear or warning signs were insufficient, then it’s worth appealing.”
A TfL spokesperson said: “Data shows that more than 95 per cent of vehicles seen in the ULEZ on an average day are ULEZ compliant. The ULEZ is not about making money. It will lead to cleaner air while generating ever smaller net revenues, as has been the case with the previous expansion to inner London where people switched to greener vehicles.”
The spokesperson continued: “If a customer receives a penalty charge notice (PCN) they can pay the penalty at a 50 per cent discount within 14 days, or have up to 28 days to pay the penalty in full, or challenge the PCN by making a representation. Representations can be made on one of six grounds, and TfL also considers mitigating circumstances and uses its discretion in reaching a decision, including cancelling the fine. Around 10 per cent of ULEZ PCNs issued after its London-wide expansion have been cancelled.”
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