Clean Air Zone scams trick drivers into paying fake charges and still getting huge fines
The council is warning drivers to only use official websites
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Drivers are being urged to only pay for a Clean Air Zone charge on official websites after a number of people were found to have been scammed.
A number of Clean Air Zones are active around the UK, with others still being considered in a bit to reduce emissions in cities.
Newcastle and Gateshead saw the introduction of its Clean Air Zone in January this year, with charges for vans and LGVs starting on July 17.
The “second stage” of the CAZ launch was staggered to help more van drivers switch their vehicles in time and remove polluting petrol and diesel vehicles from the streets.
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The Tyneside Clean Air Zone covers a number of key areas including Newcastle city centre and routes over the Tyne and Swing bridges.
A number of motorists have come forward to the council informing them of having paid a fee to drive in the area, yet still receiving a fine.
These people had unknowingly used scam websites to pay their toll for the Clean Air Zone, only to realise that the payment had not been registered with the council.
Drivers who fall foul of the Clean Air Zone rules will be hit with a daily fee of £12.50 for vans, LGVs, taxis and minibuses, while non-compliant buses, coaches and HGVs have to pay £50 a day.
Councillor Irim Ali, cabinet member for a dynamic city at Newcastle City Council, which is the lead authority for implementing the CAZ, issued a warning to drivers.
She said: "There are a number of third-party websites and providers offering to manage Clean Air Zone payments on behalf of drivers but people need to be aware that these are not official payment channels.”
The Labour councillor said many people had visited these scam websites to try and pay for their eligibility before or after driving in the zone.
They then found themselves having to pay a penalty charge notice because their original Clean Air Zone fee had not been paid.
Councillor Ali continued, saying: "We're also aware that drivers with compliant vehicles who were not required to pay a CAZ fee have been charged anyway by these unofficial and misleading sites.
"That's why we are reminding drivers to ensure they use only the official payment system for all Clean Air Zone transactions."
Rogue advertisers were paying to advertise their website higher than the official Transport for London website in the hopes of tricking drivers into giving them money.
Speaking at the time, London Mayor Sadiq Khan confirmed that TfL is not associated with any third-party websites accepting ULEZ payments.
Scam websites appeared when searching for keywords like “pay Ulez charge” or even just “Ulez”.
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Some drivers in and around London were almost tricked by the scams
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Some fake websites even charged a premium to use the service, compared to TfL’s website which only charges the £12.50 daily cost.