After ULEZ is expanded across London a council warns people of Clean Air Zone scam

clean air zone
A warning to people has gone out following a clean air scam Credit: ITV Meridian

Days after London's controversial Ultra Low Emission Zone was extended a council has warned people to be vigilant over an online scam.

Portsmouth City Council is urging people to ensure they are only using an official Government vehicle checker to see if they are exempt from the city's clean air zone.

The authority says fraudulent websites claiming to be authorised are taking money from people who think they are making a payment to the appropriate website. Portsmouth was the third area in the country to bring in a clean air zone in November 2021, following Bath and Birmingham.

Drivers, whose cars don’t meet Ulez emission standards face a daily fee of £12.50 for using London’s roads. Credit: PA Media

Under the class B zone covering the south west of Portsea Island, non-compliant taxis and private hire vehicles are charged £10 a day and lorries and buses £50 a day.Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jackson, Cabinet Member for Transport said, "Anyone can fall a victim of scammers, who are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and often pay for their websites to appear as the first option on search engines, tricking people into inputting their payment information. "Some people have already been scammed into paying the fraudulent site and this has been reported to the National Cyber Security Centre."It is important that residents and visitors to Portsmouth are vigilant and making sure they are using the official government website to check their vehicle is compliant with Portsmouth’s Clean Air Zone and making any payments there if they are required. Private cars, motorcycles and vans are not required to pay to drive within our Clean Air Zone."

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