Request ID: FOI-2927-2223 Date published: 02 March 2023
You asked
Having received 6 ULEZ PCN's for the month of January 2023 for my car which is a 2021 car therefore is exempt but has a private numberplate, I would like to know how many PCN's have been issued to drivers also without accurately checking their emissions status and how many of those PCN's have been paid.
I would also like to know which data fields TfL query from the DVLA under their data sharing agreement in order to justify the PCN and whether a fresh query is undertaken each time or if TfL cache this data.
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-2927-2223
Thank you for your request of 7th February 2023 asking for information about ULEZ Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs).
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
Specifically you asked:
“Having received 6 ULEZ PCN's for the month of January 2023 for my car which is a 2021 car therefore is exempt but has a private numberplate, I would like to know how many PCN's have been issued to drivers also without accurately checking their emissions status and how many of those PCN's have been paid.
I would also like to know which data fields TfL query from the DVLA under their data sharing agreement in order to justify the PCN and whether a fresh query is undertaken each time or if TfL cache this data.”
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.
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.
When a registration plate is transferred from a non-compliant to a compliant vehicle our compliance checker is updated when we next refresh the data. This can result in a short delay in the compliance status of the vehicle changing. If a PCN is issued, as soon as it becomes apparent the registration is now on a compliant vehicle, the penalty is cancelled and the compliance status updated.
As outlined above we do verify compliance of every vehicle which is driven in the ULEZ prior to issuing a penalty. However, we do not record how many penalties have been issued as a result of the data we are checking not being accurate. This is because at the time of checking the data we would not know if it has recently been updated.
The process for issuing a PCN, and the information we receive from the DVLA for that purpose, is separate from the compliance checker. When issuing a PCN, a new enquiry is made to the DVLA for each penalty and we receive vehicle details listed below.
Make
Model
Variants
Fuel Type
If you have any outstanding enquiries regarding the penalties issued to you then please contact our Road User Charging correspondence tam at [email protected]
If this is not the information you are looking for 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,
David Wells FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
