Information on how emission data is obtained when V5 is blank
Request ID: FOI-0917-2425 Date published: 08 July 2024
You asked
Please can you let me know how Tfl obtain the Nox emission data on an imported vehicle where there is no information on the V5 and therefore DVLA do not have the information to provide to you.
Please also advise why, when a Certificate of Compliance cannot be obtained because the car manufacturer no longer exists or does not have the required information, what other information is relied upon to determine compliance or not?
Can you also advise how many successful challenges to Tfl's initial decision on compliance there have been in the last year and what information was provided that proved compliance.
We answered
Our ref: FOI-0917-2425/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 20 June 2024 asking for information about emission data.
Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold some of the information you require. In order to establish whether a vehicle is compliant with the ULEZ emission standards we predominantly use the vehicle data held by the DVLA. In most cases we can establish a vehicle’s compliance status by the date it was first registered as new. We know that all diesel cars first registered as new after 1 September 2015, and all petrol cars first registered as new after 1 January 2006 are automatically compliant with the ULEZ standards. A number of other vehicle attributes are taken into consideration including the vehicle type, year of manufacture, date of registration and its NOx & PM emissions (if recorded). We use data from a variety of sources including the DVLA, the VCA (Vehicle Certification Agency) and information sourced from vehicle manufacturers, supplemented on an ongoing basis by information provided to TfL by owners / registered keepers of individual vehicles. Using the data provided by the DVLA we have developed a compliance database which lists the compliance status of all UK registered vehicles. This is not a live link to the DVLA data; rather a static list of vehicles which is refreshed with new updated DVLA data every month. By updating the list regularly it ensures any update to vehicle information held by the DVLA is reflected on our database soon afterwards.
If there is no evidence of compliance that we can rely upon, these vehicles are classified as non-compliant unless, the owner can prove otherwise. We accept a Certificate of Conformity or a letter from the vehicle manufacturer’s homologation department confirming the specific vehicle’s emissions. We have worked with vehicle manufacturers to validate the evidence we receive.
We do not hold the data you requested regarding the number of accepted challenges to vehicle compliance as these instances are not recorded in a way which allows us to compile this information. However when evidence of compliance is provided our records are updated accordingly.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Graham Hurt FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
