London 2026: Euro 5 Petrol Clears ULEZ, Not the £18

ULEZ asks petrol cars for Euro 4, so a 2014 Euro 5 petrol owes nothing anywhere inside Greater London — no charge, no sticker, no registration, because the cameras simply read the plate against TfL’s records. The bill that still applies in the middle of the city is the Congestion Charge: a flat £18 a day, emissions ignored, weekdays 07:00-18:00 and weekends 12:00-18:00.

The emission question is the easy one

TfL publishes two figures for cars and no others: petrol Euro 4 and diesel Euro 6. Petrol cars have met the Euro 4 NOx level since roughly 2006, which is why the diesel line catches so many more vehicles than the petrol one. A 2014 Euro 5 petrol is a class above the standard, and ULEZ is a charge rather than a ban in any case — a non-compliant car is never turned away, it simply owes £12.50 for the day.

The zone runs across all 32 boroughs and the City of London, every day of the year except Christmas Day. The M25 itself is not in the zone, so a route that rings the city rather than crossing it has never cost anything.

The charge that does apply in the centre

Inside the much smaller central zone, the Congestion Charge takes £18 for any day the car is driven there between 07:00 and 18:00 on weekdays or 12:00 and 18:00 at weekends and bank holidays. It is a traffic measure, not an emission one: a Euro 5 petrol pays exactly what a new hybrid pays. Settle it on the day or in advance for £18; leave it until midnight on the third day after travel and it becomes £21.

Electric cars no longer sidestep it either. The 100% Cleaner Vehicle Discount ended on 25 December 2025, replaced on 2 January 2026 by 25% off for electric cars and 50% for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles, applied through Auto Pay.

What going wrong costs

Both schemes end in the same penalty: £180, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days. For this car ULEZ is not in play, so the only realistic route to a notice is an unpaid Congestion Charge day — and no invoice arrives to prompt you. The clock runs to midnight on the third day after the journey, and then stops hard.

Whether to drive into the centre at all

Between the daily charge, parking at £4-8 an hour and the bus-lane cameras, a fully compliant car still bleeds money in zone 1. The cheaper pattern is the usual one: park at an outer Underground station car park and ride in. Clearing ULEZ removes a cost, not a reason.

Before you drive this petrol Euro 5 into London

• ✅ Euro 5 petrol is a class above the ULEZ Euro 4 standard — nothing to pay, nothing to register
• ✅ The zone covers all 32 boroughs and the City of London; the M25 is outside it
• ✅ Central London still costs £18 a day under the Congestion Charge, whatever the Euro class
• ✅ Pay a Congestion Charge day by midnight on the third day after travel, or it rises to £21
• ✅ An unpaid day becomes a £180 penalty, £90 if settled within 14 days