Van driver slapped with staggering £47k effective for clear air zone error | UK | News | EUROtoday

A van driver was horrified after ­discovering he had racked up £47,000 price of fresh air zone fines with out his data.

Dale D’Agostino, 42, mistakenly believed his 12-year-old Volkswagen Caravelle van was exempt of the £9 every day cost in Bradford when ­launched in September 2022.

But he had forgotten to replace his car’s V5 logbook when he moved home, so 317 £120 penalty cost notices have been despatched to his outdated deal with.

It was solely when he up to date his van’s particulars with the DVLA in March that he was immediately deluged with tons of of fines.

Due to his failure to pay on time, they went as much as £149 every.

Dale insists he referred to as Bradford City Council and was instructed his 1.9-litre diesel van was exempt from the CAZ cost as a result of it was a personal, non-business car.

The authority stated it’s a driver’s accountability to verify whether it is exempt or not.

Dale stated: “I’m not really sure how I’m going to raise that sort of money. What am I going to do?

“Why haven’t these tickets been enforced so I could deal with it sooner? They know I have assets but I don’t have this money so I’ll have to sell everything to pay it.”

Dale says he has appealed the fines, which have been rejected, and has been to a tribunal for 14 of the fines, however is now ready for a choice again.

The CAZ was launched in September 2022 however Dale, of Bingley, West Yorks, says he was instructed by the council that his car was exempt, explaining: “I was told I would be added to a white list.”

He added: “Roll on two years, I wanted to remove my private plate and could not find my V5 logbook so applied for a replacement.

“In doing so came a load of CAZ fines. As these tickets started stacking up, I wondered why I didn’t have an exemption.”

A Bradford Council spokesman stated: “It’s the driver’s legal responsibility to make sure they keep the DVLA updated with their vehicle details and current address.

“All Bradford businesses and residents have been given the opportunity to apply for exemptions for their vehicles which means they can pass through the CAZ free of charge at all times.

“It is the vehicle user’s responsibility to pay any charge due via the national Government’s Central Service payment portal.”

He added companies and residents have been eligible to use for an exemption since earlier than the CAZ was applied, and nonetheless can.

“All information relating to grant and exemption eligibility as well as how to appeal a penalty charge can be found on our website,” he stated.

“We would encourage anyone who is unsure about any aspect of the clean air zone to call our team on 01274 435533.”