One of the government's weapons in its clean air battle is to discourage and penalise the use of older, more polluting commercial vehicles.
Currently, London has a Low Emission Zone (LEZ) covering most of Greater London and a smaller Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) which covers all areas within the North and South Circular Roads.
However, as of 29 August, the ULEZ will expand across all London boroughs up to the existing LEZ boundary, creating one single zone.
Who’s affected by the expansion zone?
Cars, motorcycles, vans and other specialist vehicles such as motorised horseboxes and pickups (up to and including 3.5 tonnes) and minibuses (up to and including 5 tonnes) whether petrol or diesel, will need to meet the ULEZ emissions standards or face a daily charge.
What about lorries, vans or specialist heavy vehicles?
Drivers of lorries, vans or specialist heavy vehicles (all over 3.5 tonnes) and buses, minibuses and coaches (all over 5 tonnes) do not need to pay the ULEZ charge. However, they will need to pay the LEZ charge if their vehicles do not meet the LEZ emissions standards.
How to check if your vehicle meets the ULEZ emission standards
To check your vehicle, visit the Transport for London website.
The zone will be enforced by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (APNR) cameras, which will record all vehicle movements in and out of the area.
How we can help you
At Dawsongroup truck and trailer, we refresh and upgrade our fleet on an ongoing basis and have a continual flow of new vehicles on order and available for contract hire. We have more coming on stream in the next few months.
With 100% of our fleet of around 4,000 trucks already meeting the latest ULEZ requirements, we can offer affordable options to keep you clear of costly charges.
The underlying requirement for any operator is for maximum flexibility in both fleet operations and financial management – the kind of benefits we provide through our rental, leasing and contract hire services.
Both offer economical and flexible options that provide certainty and include many of your ongoing vehicle-related costs. Most importantly, we provide vehicles that allow you to carry on your normal business in any ULEZ, LEZ or Clean Air Zone (CAZ), without any impact on your capital investment.
What’s more, acquiring vehicles in this way allows you to dispose of your old vehicles and invest any capital returns this generates into developing and growing other areas of your business.
Have you considered Dawsondirect?
If replacing is your preferred option, why not sell your old vehicles and buy more up-to-date, compliant ones through our used sales business, Dawsondirect? Dawsondirect can also help you dispose of your non-compliant assets.
The bigger environmental landscape
London's ULEZ is just one part of a bigger environmental landscape, which will take a while to settle down.
With the move to zero-emission HGVs firmly on the agenda and the transport sector’s road to zero picking up pace year on year, our contract hire services can also ease any concerns you might have about alternative-fuelled vehicles.
For the foreseeable future, regulations will continue to change and tighten, and technologies will continue to develop and improve. So, it’s difficult to make a compelling business case for greener vehicles right now, and you risk making big and costly mistakes.
Do you stick with diesel for the time being or do you venture into gas or electric vehicles? What will become the dominant fuel? How will residual values hold up? Will alternative-fuelled vehicles have second or third lives after their first lease or period of ownership?
With HGVs having relatively long lifespans and the 2035 and 2040 zero-emissions deadlines looming, how do you actually transition to a new kind of fleet?
The likelihood is that, whatever decision you make today, you’ll most probably have obsolete assets on your hands a few years down the line. These are all real-world issues facing today’s commercial vehicle operator.
Try Before You Buy
We’re in the early stages in the journey towards lower emissions, and there’s a significant risk for operators at the lowest level of compliance - even after a very expensive retrofit, for example. The danger is that that they’ll be left behind when standards tighten further.
However, backed by our expertise and support, you can trial cleaner vehicles risk-free in your own business environment, comparing key factors such as costs, operational performance and ease of refuelling, before committing to what’s right for your company.
So, we’re already doing a lot of the hard work – investing in new technology, trialling new kit and taking the associated risks – all so that you don’t have to.
Dawsongroup finance
With rising costs and increasing inflationary pressure, finances are also under greater scrutiny. However, through Dawsongroup finance, we can provide options that free up much-needed cash for your business.
Everyone’s busy in these exceptional times, but you ought to make time to plan ahead and start a conversation with your supplier as soon as possible to discuss your options.
How can we help?
We can help support and insulate your business through changes in legislation and prevent literally thousands of pounds going up in smoke while, at the same time, play a part in bringing cleaner air to London.
Whichever way forward makes best sense for your operation, why not take a few minutes to contact me SteveWinchester@dawsongroup.co.uk (07920 877500) to discuss how we can make our award-winning services, partnership approach and excellent customer service provide a Smarter Asset Strategy for your business?
Alternatively, contact your nearest branch. It costs nothing and you have nothing to lose except the endlessly rising costs of maintaining and adapting older vehicles and the real risk of racking up air pollution charges year after year.
Steve Winchester, Contract Hire Manager – London and the South East, Dawsongroup truck and trailer