ULEZ Scrappage Scheme – all you need to know

Everything you need to know about London’s £110 million ULEZ scrappage scheme

London’s Ultra-Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) has been expanded as of 29 August 2023, growing from the area inside the North and South Circular roads, to almost all of greater London – essentially those parts inside the M25 orbital motorway.

The ULEZ sees drivers of older, more polluting vehicles pay £12.50 to enter the zone, and with the 2023 expansion covering so vast an area, Transport for London has announced a £110m scrappage scheme that will help people replace cars that do not meet its criteria – although you need to be in receipt of certain state benefits in order to qualify. Small businesses will also be able to apply to replace their non-compliant vans and minibuses.

ULEZ scrappage scheme – am I eligible?

If you have a vehicle that isn’t ULEZ compliant and you live in London, you may want to consider replacing it with a ULEZ-compliant car. That’s where the scrappage scheme comes in: it’s designed to help disabled and low-income Londoners scrap older, more polluting cars.

To apply you must be living within one of the 32 London Boroughs or the City of London and claiming one or more benefits, including:

• Universal Credit
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Child Tax Credit
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• Disability Living Allowance
• Employment and Support Allowance
• Housing Benefit
• Income Support
• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
• Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Pension Credit
• Personal Independence Payment
• Severe Disablement Allowance
• War Pensions Mobility Supplement
• Working Tax Credit

The scrappage scheme will also be expanded from the end of July to include all Londoners in receipt of child benefit, which covers the majority of people with a child under 16 at home, or one under 18 in full-time education.

Charities, small businesses and sole traders can also apply for a scrappage grant for their vans and minibuses. Currently, this applies to those who have 10 employees or fewer, however this will be expanded from the end of July to businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

ULEZ scrappage scheme – is my car eligible?

Applicants can only scrap cars, motorcycles or mopeds that:

• Are registered with the DVLA to the applicant (or someone who lives at the same address as the applicant) and owned for more than 12 months before 23 October 2019.
• Are insured
• Have up-to-date MOT and road tax
• Don’t meet ULEZ emission standards

The ULEZ  applies to cars that don’t meet Euro 4 (diesel cars) or Euro 6 (petrol cars) emissions standards. Generally speaking, that covers diesel cars built before 2015 and petrol cars built before 2005. You can use our handy ULEZ checker to check if your car is ULEZ compliant or not.

ULEZ scrappage scheme – how much can I save?

If you and your vehicle qualify for the ULEZ scrappage scheme you can make a £1,000 saving on a new motorcycle or moped and £2,000 on a new car. The vehicle you scrap must not meet ULEZ standards and you must replace it with a vehicle that does.

People with wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAVs), meanwhile, will get £5,000 towards the cost of a new vehicle if they scrap their old one.

Small businesses, sole traders and charities can apply for a scrappage grant to replace their van or minibus. If you scrap a van or a minibus you’ll get £5,000 or £7,000 respectively. Alternatively, you can apply for a £5,000 grant to have your van or minibus retrofitted with an emission-reducing device to make it compliant. If you scrap your vehicle to replace it with an electric one, you’ll get £7,500 for your van or £9,500 for your minibus.

ULEZ scrappage scheme: how to apply

If you and your vehicle meet the criteria for the scrappage scheme, you’ll need to head to TfL’s website to begin the process.