Nearly all Ulez fine evaders are persistent - TfL

Ulez penalty charge notices are £180, halved to £90 if paid within 14 days

Almost all penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued for non-payment of Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) charges involve persistent evaders, Transport for London (TfL) says.

Some 94% of PCNs have been issued to drivers with more than four outstanding notices. TfL says it has recovered more than £16.5m of debt in the first half of 2025.

Since Ulez expanded to cover all of London in 2023, drivers of older, more polluting vehicles must pay a £12.50 daily charge. If unpaid, a £180 PCN is issued, halved if paid within 14 days.

Alex Williams, TfL's chief customer and strategy officer, said: "We want to make it clear that if you receive a penalty charge for driving in the zone, you should not ignore it."

Cars auctioned

Initially covering the Congestion Zone, Ulez was expanded in 2021 to cover the North and South Circular roads and widened again in 2023 to all of London.

Figures obtained by the BBC in July showed more than 400,000 drivers in Kent, Surrey and Sussex have been penalised since the latest expansion.

More than £70m has been paid in PCNs by London's drivers due to Ulez in six years, with Croydon motorists the most frequent offenders, official data shows.

TfL says more than 530 vehicles were seized between January and June with about £285,000 raised from vehicles sold at auction.

It added an "intelligence-led approach" allowed staff to "track evaders down to different addresses and employing more effective data-sharing with other national bodies" including the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.

Mr Williams added: "Most drivers who have vehicles that are liable for the charge are responsible and pay it. It is only a small group of persistent evaders who fail to do so.

"Your penalty will progress to enforcement agents to recover what you owe, and there is a risk that your vehicle and other items of property will be removed.

"If you're ignoring it because you are facing financial difficulties, please instead engage with our staff, who can consider your individual circumstances and work with you."