TfL Ref 2747-2021 Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 31 March 2021 asking for information about foreign registered vehicles and the London Congestion Charge. Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require. Enforcement of PCNs against foreign registered vehicles is an issue for all highway authorities as there is no legislation which enables effective data sharing between European or worldwide vehicle licensing agencies. TfL has contractors that seek to recover money from fines issued to non-UK vehicles. These contractors continue to work to increase access to European vehicle registration databases and the provision of accurate vehicle information to aid this recovery. Please see your questions and our replies as below: The data is for calendar year 2020. It should be considered that in response to the Coronavirus pandemic the Congestion Charge was suspended on 23 March 2020 and reinstated on 18 May 2020 and no penalties were issued during this period. Vehicles operated by foreign embassies based in London are usually registered in the UK and therefore these figures do not include penalties issued to foreign embassies. How many foreign registered vehicles did not pay the London Congestion Charge? When a vehicle is used in the Congestion Charging zone a motorist can pay the charge up to 90 days in advance or at any point during the following three charging days after travel. If no charge is purchased a penalty may be issued. In 2020 a total of 21,109 foreign registered vehicles were observed in the Congestion Charging zone without purchase of a valid charge. What is the value of this non-payment? How many have been fined for non-payment of the LCC? TfL issued 9,853 PCNs to non-UK registered vehicles in 2020 and 6,943 remain outstanding. A penalty charge notice is payable at £160, reduced to £80 for payment within 14 days. The value of the outstanding penalties at £80 per penalty is £555,440 Of the total amount not paid, what is the percentage for each European country? This % by country is shown below: Country % Issued PCNs not paid Germany 22.6% Spain 21.2% Italy 13.3% Switzerland 4.7% Lithuania 4.4% USA 2.7% Sweden 1.9% Portugal 1.9% United Kingdom* 2.6% Poland 2.3% Hungary 1.5% Denmark 1.4% France 1.7% Qatar 1.8% Jersey 1.4% Ireland 1.2% The Netherlands 1.3% United Arab Emirates 1.4% Belgium 0.5% Hong Kong 0.7% Austria 0.4% Australia 0.5% Kuwait 0.9% Norway 0.6% Romania 0.7% Canada 0.5% China 0.6% Saudi Arabia 0.5% Singapore 0.3% Turkey 0.3% Luxembourg 0.3% Russia 0.3% Malaysia 0.2% Brazil 0.2% Isle of Man 0.2% Czech Republic 0.2% Bulgaria 0.2% Egypt 0.2% India 0.1% Ukraine 0.1% Republic of Korea 0.2% Japan 0.1% Argentina 0.1% Malta 0.1% Israel 0.1% Thailand 0.1% Bermuda 0.1% Slovakia 0.1% South Africa 0.1% Finland 0.1% Latvia 0.1% New Zealand 0.0% Serbia 0.1% Nigeria 0.1% Montenegro 0.1% Chile 0.1% Total 100% * There will be occasionally vehicles that are registered in the UK where the keeper’s address is non UK and so enforcement outside the UK is required. What are the figures for foreign registered cars, buses and lorries? We do not hold this information. We do not distinguish between cars / buses and Heavy Good Vehicles (HGVs) and therefore the data provided is for all vehicles. If you are considering submitting a further FOI request please think carefully about whether the request is essential at this current time, as answering FOI requests will require the use of limited resources and the attention of staff who could be supporting other essential activity. Where requests are made, please note that our response time may be impacted by the current situation. 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 Sara Thomas FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London