9 March 2012

Vans were included among vehicles affected by London’s Low Emission Zone when normal working resumed on 3 January. Specifically, the rules now apply to vans and pickups of between 1.205 tonnes unladen and 3.5 tonnes gross, as well as to motor caravans, ambulances and minibuses.

This could be problematic for vehicles registered before 1 January 2002, most of which won’t have a Euro 3 engine. As a rule of thumb, the Freight Transport Association suggests that the change is most likely to affect vehicles ten or more years old (Y-registration and some 51 plate).

The daily LEZ charge for non-compliant vehicles is a swingeing £100, so payment is not a practical option; fitting and certifying a filter is the only real solution.

In the meantime, affected users would do well to fit vehicle tracking systems that can include geofencing (many do this) to alert them of where not to travel.

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