Clean air zones are costing van drivers around £780 a year

If you drive an older diesel into a city with a clean air zone, the daily charges add up faster than most people expect. New research from Peugeot, reported by Professional Builder and Van Fleet World, puts the average cost to UK van drivers at £780 a year, or about £65 a month.

Where it costs the most

• London: £99 a month on average, close to £1,200 a year. The ULEZ and LEZ charge £12.50 a day for a non-compliant van.
• Tyneside (Newcastle and Gateshead): £82 a month, £984 a year. The daily charge there is also £12.50.
• Other English zones charge between £8 and £10 a day.
• Scotland: £39 a month on average. Wales: £37 a month.

Councils have taken nearly £1.5bn

Freedom of Information requests to the councils running the zones show that 12 of the 13 have collected almost £1.5bn between launch and 31 March 2026. London's LEZ and ULEZ account for more than £1.2bn of that. Birmingham's clean air zone has brought in over £188m.

A lot of drivers do not know if they are compliant

Two thirds of the drivers surveyed (66%) believe their van meets the standard. Nearly one in five (19%) are not sure, which is how accidental charges and fines happen. 15% know their van does not comply.

Steve Wass, managing director of Peugeot UK, said: "With rising fuel and living costs, our research highlights how much commercial van drivers face in terms of annual expenditure."

Check before you drive in

For most zones the standard is Euro 6 for a diesel van and Euro 4 for petrol, but the only way to be sure is to check the registration. The gov.uk vehicle checker at gov.uk/clean-air-zones covers the English zones, and Transport for London has its own checker for the ULEZ. If you quote for regular work inside a zone, the daily charge is a cost of the job like any other.