Fewer than one in 50 cars on sale in London meet the ULEZ standard and are affordable for those on a budget, new data shows

Motorists in London are facing a shortage of ULEZ cars as new data shows fewer than one in fifty ‘affordable’ cars are available for purchase.

According to Auto Trader research, only 461 of the 24,500 vehicles on sale in Greater London meet capital emissions standards and are affordably priced (under £2,000).

From August 2023, drivers of older and more polluting diesel cars will have to pay a daily driving fee of £12.50 as part of the plan to reduce air pollution in London.

And while Transport for London assured drivers before the introduction that they ‘didn’t need to buy a brand new vehicle as there are affordable, compliant vehicles available’, this latest research suggests this is not the case.

Demand for used cars across Britain is rising ahead of the launch of ULEZ, pushing the average advertised price to £17,880, up from just £13,600 in February 2020 – an increase of 32 per cent.

Ian Plummer, commercial director at AutoTrader, said: ‘For those on a tight budget, there are few options for affordable driving left in London six months after the introduction of the extended ULEZ zone in London.

‘With fewer than 500 cars for sale under the £2,000 limit of the Mayor’s scrappage scheme, many could be faced with the unpalatable choice of paying up to £3,000 in ULEZ fees or being forced off the road altogether.’

Also, only 917, or 3.7 percent, of the 24,500 vehicles listed on the online marketplace did not meet the ULEZ requirements.

While TfL has launched a £110 million scrappage scheme to provide financial support to those who dump their older polluting cars, it is offering a paltry £2,000 to drivers who scrap their engines.

The scheme is also only available to people living in London’s 32 boroughs and people can only apply for the scheme if they receive certain low income or disability benefits.

It was estimated that there were around 200,000 non-compliant vehicles in London when the new legislation came into effect.

Conservative mayoral candidate Susan Hall has focused her campaign on the ULEZ, which she promises to scrap if elected in May.

She said: ‘Sadiq Khan’s new ULEZ tax of £12.50 a day has been absolutely devastating for people who cannot afford to go to work, go to hospital or visit their family.

“It is those on the lowest incomes who are most likely to own substandard cars and be affected by this tax. And despite the mayor’s rhetoric, his own independent impact assessment found it would do next to nothing to improve air quality.”