TfL Ref: 1777-1819

Thank you for your email received by us on 5 October 2018 asking for information about the Congestion Charging scheme.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. You asked for:

the number and total sum of payments people have made for congestion charge when they did not actually go through congestion charge. The most recent figure you have will be appropriate.

For example someone gives £24 (congestion and T-Charge) thinking they travelled through congestion charge and they did not. But the payment still leaves the account.

The Congestion Charge operates using Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology. As a vehicle either enters, leaves or drives within the zone its registration is recorded along with a colour image of the vehicle. At the end of the next charging day, when the payment period has expired, the list of vehicles observed in the zone is compared against the vehicles for which a charge has been paid and those which are 100% discounted, exempt from the charge or registered on a Congestion Charging Auto Pay account. Where a match is found the image and record of the vehicle is deleted. If no match is found the details are retained for enforcement purposes.

Therefore we do not hold details of the number of vehicles for which the charge has been paid and did not use the zone.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.

Yours sincerely

Jasmine Howard
FOI Case Officer
Information Governance
Transport For London