A major authority has launched new enforcement measures in a bid to claw back more than half a million pounds in unpaid Low Emission Zone (LEZ) fines.
Aberdeen City Council is reportedly planning on using debt collectors to receive the £561,000 in unpaid LEZ fines, a move that has been met with bitter opposition.
Council officials confirmed that their own debt recovery teams were now working to retrieve the money from drivers caught entering the zone in non-compliant vehicles.
However, if those efforts failed, cases would be passed to Scott and Co, an external debt collection and enforcement service, to pursue motorists through more formal channels.
Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing [email protected]
The debt collectors will be used to reclaim the £561,000 of unpaid LEZ fines
|
GETTY/PA
This has fuelled a growing backlash against the scheme, with Councillor Alex Nicoll branding the figures “eye-watering” and arguing the entire LEZ system should be scrapped.
“That’s a huge amount of money that we’ve issued out there, and we’re being told a huge amount remains unpaid. That’s very concerning,” Mr Nicoll said.
The Conservative councillor claimed the rules were unfairly hitting ordinary working people who could not afford newer vehicles.
He said: “This is particularly damaging to some of the poorest people in our society who happen to own older cars.”
Mr Nicoll pointed out that compliance had risen from 82 per cent in 2023 to 89 per cent in 2025, but warned this “improvement” came at the expense of those least able to pay. He urged councillors to abolish the scheme altogether.
The council’s SNP members pushed back, insisting the measures were vital to protect public health. Councillor Dell Henrickson defended the crackdown, saying city centre residents deserved cleaner air.
He noted: “I know that the levels are quite low at the moment, but I don’t see any reason why we can’t work to reduce those levels even more so that the people that actually live in the city centre have decent air to breathe.”
Officers reported that nitrogen dioxide levels on Union Street had fallen over the past year, citing this as evidence of the scheme’s environmental benefits.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
The LEZ was introduced in June 2024 after a two-year grace period and covers key routes such as Denburn Road, Virginia Street and Alford Place.
Drivers of non-compliant vehicles face a £60 penalty, reduced to £30 if paid within 14 days. Petrol vehicles must meet Euro 4 standards, while diesel vehicles must meet Euro 6 standards.
Critics warned the scheme was having a devastating economic impact, with Conservative group leader Richard Brooks warning that it was driving shoppers out of Aberdeen city centre.
“Some of us who drive a car will go to the Shire to shop now, we won’t bother coming into the city centre,” Mr Brooks told Press and Journal.
He added: “Inverurie is booming, to name just one area outside of Aberdeen, because of what is happening in this city.”
Former Aberdeen South MP Ross Thomson went further, accusing the SNP-led council of being on a “kamikaze mission to kill what’s left of our city centre”.
The LEZ operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is enforced by Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras.
While the number of fines has declined as drivers adapt or upgrade their cars, the council acknowledged that running costs for cameras and signage remained fixed and could rise further.