One million people at risk of Thames crossing fines

National Highways said 770,000 of its 1.7m account holders had successfully updated their Dart Charge payment details

About one million people could be at risk of fines for crossing the Thames between Essex and Kent, figures from National Highways show.

The government company said motorists with accounts for using the Dartford Crossing had been told to revalidate their card details in July 2023.

But just 770,000 of its 1.7 million account holders successfully updated their details as requested.

Road users have told the BBC they received fines after their accounts were closed without them knowing.

The standard one-off cost for car drivers using either the southbound QE2 bridge or the northbound Dartford Tunnel is £2.50.

National Highways changed its service provider for the Dart Charge last July and a series of errors in the system followed.

Sarah Day, from Colchester, told BBC Essex her account was shut without her knowledge and she received "a whole bunch of fines" at the start of this year.

Stuart Randall added that he was issued seven fines worth £332.50 in total after the same error happened to him.

Another person revealed bailiffs had been sent to their house over missed payments - transactions they thought had been automatically paid.

National Highways said inactivity or invalid payment details could cause a Dart Charge account to close.

It added that all customers who received a fine could submit a challenge.

"The Dartford Crossing has around 4.5 million crossings per month and the vast majority of crossings are paid without issue," a spokesperson said.