Damning new data has shown that one driver in London has racked up more than £100,000 in motoring fines in just nine months.
Research obtained through a Freedom of Information request found that the owner of a Kia Ceed owes a staggering amount of fines for various offences across London.
In total, the Kia driver has racked up £66,610 in fines from the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) and a further £41,730 in fines from the Congestion Charge.
The costs and fines have been issued between January and September this year, with the driver owing money for 265 Ulez fines and 167 Congestion Charge penalty charge notices.
Drivers can be hit with fines for driving inside the Ulez area, which includes all of Greater London, if their vehicle is not compliant and they do not pay the daily charge.
While it costs £12.50 to drive in the capital within 24 hours, motorists can be slapped with a fine worth as much as £2,000 if they do not pay.
Owners of cars, vans, motorcycles, motor tricycles and mopeds can be charged £180 if they do not pay the daily charge, although this will fall to £90 if paid within 14 days.
The same fine is applied to motor caravans and ambulances between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes, as well as minibuses with more than eight seats that weigh less than five tonnes.
READ MORE: Sadiq Khan’s Ulez expansion had ‘no significant impact’ on emissions as drivers ‘punished for nothing’
Drivers can be slapped with hefty penalties if they fail to pay for the Congestion Charge and Ulez
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PA
However, more expensive fines are available for larger vehicles, including £500 for vehicles with a 3.5 tonne gross weight, such as vans, breakdown vehicles, hearses and minibuses.
Lorries, goods vehicles, motor caravans and specialist heavy vehicles can be fined £1,000 if they weigh more than 3.5 tonnes. This is based on them meeting the Euro IV standard, but not the Euro VI standard.
Any large vehicle which does not meet Euro IV standards for particulate matter and weighs more than 3.5 tonnes faces a huge £2,000 fine.
Vehicles escape Ulez charges if they meet Euro 4 petrol standards, which generally apply to cars sold after January 2005, and Euro 6 diesel standards, which were first registered after September 2015.
The owner of the Kia Ceed owes more than £100,000 for Ulez and Congestion Charge fines
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KIA
Another driver, who owns a BMW X5, has collected 270 Ulez fines totalling £67,450, although they have not broken Congestion Charge rules.
In third place, a Renault Grand Scenic Dynamique driver accrued 207 penalty charge notices from Congestion Charge infractions, resulting in a total cost worth £56,580.
Drivers must pay £15 a day to drive inside the Congestion Charge area, which includes most of central London.
The zone is operational between 7am and 6pm Monday to Friday, and between 12pm and 8pm on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays. Charges do not apply between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Electric vehicle owners will have to pay the Congestion Charge for the first time in 2026
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PAMotorists could be slapped with heftier fines in the coming months as Transport for London looks to raise the daily charge to £18 from January 2026, arguing that the change is needed to “ensure it remains effective”.
It will also axe existing rules for electric vehicles via the Cleaner Vehicle Discount, meaning EV owners would begin paying to drive in central London from the start of 2026.
Current proposals state that electric vans and HGVs would receive a 50 per cent discount for the Congestion Charge from January 2, 2026. Electric cars registered with the Auto Pay scheme would receive a 25 per cent reduction.
Transport for London is expected to confirm the changes to the Congestion Charge in the coming weeks, ahead of the new rules being introduced in the new year.