Despite my best efforts to avoid incurring fees from Transport for London (TfL) for driving my car with French number plates into London, I was hit with a hefty £300 charge.
This unexpected debit almost pushed my bank account into negative territory. I can only imagine how many people would struggle with an unexpected £300 deduction during these financially stressful times.
It’s worth noting that my 2019 Dacia Sandero Stepway, a vehicle readily available in the UK, meets the Euro 6 emissions standards. In fact, it even utilizes AdBlue, a special fluid that helps reduce emissions compared to other diesel cars of the same age.
Despite facing numerous difficulties, I managed to pre-register my vehicle on the TfL website after four attempts spanning several days. The website repeatedly rejected my number plate as invalid, but I remained persistent and eventually succeeded on the fourth try.
Prior to this incident, I had come across stories about TfL imposing excessive fines on foreign car drivers in London. Determined to avoid such a situation, I made sure to adhere to all regulations and standards.
However, it appears that TfL views foreign car drivers as mere cash cows, without considering whether they are legitimate customers who comply with the necessary vehicle standards.
In essence, if I hadn’t registered in advance, TfL wouldn’t have been able to debit £300 from me. It seems unjust that they penalize me for trying to follow their regulations.
CP, Bognor Regis/Haute-Vienne
London introduced the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) in 2019, which requires drivers of highly polluting vehicles to pay a daily charge.
Foreign vehicles must be pre-registered with TfL before entering the zone, or they may be considered noncompliant. In 2022, 167,663 fines were issued to overseas drivers.
You can find a link on the TfL website that directs you to their partner firm, EPC, where you can complete the registration process.
Admittedly, it’s not the easiest link to locate. However, instead of following this process, you inadvertently signed up for TfL’s auto-pay service. This service allows them to automatically bill you for the congestion charge and for entering the Ulez with a noncompliant vehicle.
Since your vehicle wasn’t registered in the system when you entered the Ulez area, the system applied the highest charge of £300.
After contacting TfL, they refunded your money and assisted you in completing the car registration process, hopefully preventing a recurrence of this issue.
The Ulez will be expanded at the end of August, so beware if you plan to drive into London or have friends visiting.
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