Government launches CAZ vehicle checker

The Joint Air Quality Unit has launched its Clean Air Zone vehicle checker to help drivers to check whether their vehicle is CAZ-compliant.

Birmingham and Leeds are expected to implement their Clean Air Zones in July, although a date has not yet been confirmed.

Bath will be added to the vehicle checker later this year with their CAZ due to go live in November and Sheffield early in 2021. More Clean Air Zones will be added to the checker in advance of them going live during 2021.

Compliant vehicle standards are Euro 4 Petrol and Euro 6 Diesel – anything older than this will be non-compliant and incur a daily charge to enter the zone.

The class of the zone and what vehicles are included will vary. Birmingham CAZ is a class D, meaning that this will apply to buses, coaches, taxis, private hire vehicles, HGVs, vans and private cars. Leeds CAZ is a class B meaning that there will be no charge for uncompliant vans or private cars but buses, coaches, taxis and HGVs will be charged if uncompliant.

The charges will also vary from city to city. Birmingham is proposing a daily charge of £50 for uncompliant HGVs and £8 for cars, LGVs and vans. Leeds will charge uncompliant HGVs £50 and taxi/private hire £12.50 day. Certain local exemptions may apply. Further information can be found via the BVRLA CAZ map.

The vehicle checker is for Clean Air Zones only and will not be relevant for other schemes such as the Oxford Zero Emission Zone, where what is deemed to be a compliant vehicle differs or for the London ULEZ which is run as a separate scheme by Transport for London.

The vehicle checker does not enable multiple vehicles and is not therefore suitable for larger fleets – the BVRLA continues to work with JAQU on the development of a fleet checker tool and the payment portal, which will enable fleets to check and pay for multiple vehicles but only one CAZ at a time.

Some concerns have also been raised about the accuracy of the vehicle checker, with the RAC Foundation recommending that people also check with their vehicle manufacturer.

The BVRLA will be involved in testing for the checker and payment portal in advance of the launch and to find measures which will help to ease the burden for fleets in the absence of any autopay functionality.

Check if you’re be charged to drive in a Clean Air Zone.

You may be interested in reading the following article published in the latest issue of Air Quality News: Air quality is a hot topic for the vehicle rental and leasing industry.