Find your best local estate agent Start here
July 6, 2023
5 minute read
The ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) charge is a daily fee of £12.50 payable by drivers of non-compliant vehicles. This is judged by the Euro standard attributed to a vehicle’s engine; in order to be compliant and not pay the charge, petrol and petrol-hybrid cars have to be at least Euro 4 standard and diesel must achieve Euro 6. Failure to pay the ULEZ charge after midnight the day after the day of travel in the zone in a non-compliant vehicle can result in a penalty fine of £180. When the penalty is paid within two weeks, it’s halved to £90.
It’s important to understand what the potential impact of the ULEZ expansion is for you, if you live or work in Greater London. Motorway’s free ULEZ Checker tool will clarify your compliance status in moments, and this article will make sense of what you might have to pay.
The first regulated emissions zone in London was the Congestion Charge Zone in 2003. When it was introduced, people expected houses in and near the zone to reduce in price. The extra cost to motorists was the main concern; locals believed that the higher cost of driving in London would cause house prices to drop. However, house prices continued to increase despite the new motoring charges.
When the ULEZ expanded beyond the existing Congestion Charge Zone in 2021 to cover most of Inner London, it did not have a significant effect on house prices then either.
While house prices have not decreased due to ULEZ, on the contrary, cleaner air quality is expected to have a positive influence on house prices, with properties in localised areas with lower air quality experiencing potential price reductions of up to 15%. However, factors such as job availability and earnings have a more substantial impact on urban property prices. As environmental quality and health concerns rise, the desirability of cleaner air is likely to drive higher house prices.
The ULEZ charge for driving a non-compliant vehicle costs up to £4,550 annually, based on the pricing of £12.50 per day. These days, with Greater London house prices at an all-time high and out of reach to the average Londoner, charges incurred are just seen as an extra living cost in the capital.
Investing in a compliant vehicle is advisable for motorists in the area to avoid incurring the daily fee, and is of course an option that should be weighed against the charge itself. EVs retail at higher price points than their ICE (internal combustion engine) peers, although there are now EV models at most price points.
If you are planning to buy or rent a property in Greater London from August 2023 and own a vehicle, it is crucial to check whether your car is already ULEZ compliant. Motorway’s ULEZ Checker allows you to instantly determine whether your vehicle meets the emissions standards and whether any fees apply.
The vast majority of vehicles driving in the ULEZ are compliant with the existing emissions standards. If your car is not ULEZ-compliant and you anticipate paying the daily fee, selling your vehicle to purchase a compliant one is an option. Electric cars, as well as hybrid and mild hybrid cars meeting Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel) standards, are exempt from the charge. It is essential to verify compliance standards before making any decisions.
TfL are making more sense of the little-understood Euro 4 and Euro 6 classifications by advising that if your petrol car is under sixteen years old, and your diesel car is under six years old, you are likely to be compliant. However, more accurate ways to tell include looking for those Euro classifications of your engine in your V5C logbook, or entering your reg into Motorway’s ULEZ Checker.
Prospective home buyers should also be aware that the ULEZ expansion on 29th August 2023 is expected to encompass nearly all of Greater London, up to the M25 as a border. London’s High Court is hearing arguments from four local councils who are protesting the expansion, under two grounds, and while the public waits for a decision on these arguments, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has announced several measures to make the expansion more accessible.
There is extra funding for the scrappage scheme, which will be allocated to a wider pool of Londoners. This allocates grants for low-income and disabled individuals, as well as charities and small businesses, to replace or retrofit non-compliant vehicles, or to scrap them and take public transport vouchers instead.
More recently, Sadiq Khan has suggested there could be an extended grace period for non-compliant vehicle drivers to pay incurred ULEZ charges, so they can avoid the £180 penalties for non-payment.
Many Londoners are proactively responding to ULEZ requirements, with 47% stating they would sell their cars to purchase electric vehicles in anticipation of the ULEZ expansion. There is an increasing number of ULEZ-exempt cars available on the market, and compliance can be checked before making a purchase.
Euro 6 standards generally apply to cars manufactured after September 2015, but it is always recommended to verify compliance.
Motorway’s research indicates that certain car makes are more likely to be non-compliant, with three in five of their models facing potential fines. The makes with the least-compliant lineups are Land Rover and Mercedes.
For homeowners with off-street parking, investing in an electric vehicle may be a no-brainer, even if it comes at a bit of a price, since home charging comes free from VAT, road tax is lower, and you’ll more likely avoid further congestion and emissions charges in the runup to 2030. Used EVs are a cost-effective way to make the switch.
Motorway offers a convenient way to sell your non-ULEZ-compliant car, without you having to drive it far away from Greater London to get a good price.
When you enter your reg and mileage on Motorway’s website or app, you’ll receive an instant, free valuation based on proprietary sales data and market analysis. This valuation assumes your car is in good condition, and provides a reliable benchmark of what your car could fetch in the used market, in real time. You can then complete your vehicle profile from your phone, in a matter of minutes.
If you choose to enter your car into a daily sale, it will be shown to Motorway’s nationwide network of more than 5,000 verified dealers looking to add to their stock of used cars. Interested dealers will then compete to buy your car, offering you their best price.
In as little as 24 hours you will receive your best offer — and, if you choose to go ahead with the sale, your car will be collected for free by the dealer and the money will be quickly and securely transferred to your bank account, so you can focus on finding the right car for you that’s compliant with your local emissions standards.
March 25, 2025 
