Millions of pounds worth of ULEZ fines are going unpaid despite threats from bailiffs as Kent motorists continue to revolt against the charge.

Transport for London (TfL) is estimated to have been eligible to claim almost £10 million in fines from drivers in the county since the scheme’s controversial expansion last summer.

The Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) was first introduced in April 2019 as a means of tackling the capital’s “toxic” air and requires vehicles - typically diesel and older makes with high emissions - driving within the zone to pay a daily charge of £12.50.

Failure to do so can result in a £180 penalty charge, reduced to £90 if paid within two weeks.

However, its most recent extension by London Mayor Sadiq Khan in August has seen a huge backlash from motorists in outer London and the home counties and was also subject to an unsuccessful High Court challenge.

Now, a KentOnline freedom of information request to TfL exclusively reveals only a quarter of fines dished out to motorists with vehicles registered in the county have been paid in the first two quarters it has been operational.

Across Kent, there have been 54,571 penalty charge notices (PCNs) served to drivers for entering the zone. If paid in full this would have amounted to £9.82million, or just under £5million in eligible funds if settled within 14 days.

But of these eligible fines, just 14,142 - around a quarter, or 25% - have been paid. Just 26 have been written off.

And compliance rates are even worse the closer you are to the London-Kent border.

Of the motorists listed as having a postcode in Bexley, Bromley, Dartford and Gravesham, a total of 13,976 fines remain “open” of the 18,651 issued since last August.

This amounts to avout only 13% having been paid. Although TfL told KentOnline the total figures include PCNs issued to the same vehicle on more than one occasion and so are not “reflective of the total number of individual vehicles that have been subject to a PCN”.

In DA1, which includes Crayford, only 387 of the 2983 fines issued have been paid.

One Kent motorist has been handed almost 50 PCNs for travelling in and out of the town on the ULEZ border.

The mother-of-three, who wished to remain anonymous, says she now has bailiffs demanding thousands of pounds from her.

“I am a council tenant on universal credit - £839 a month for me and my three young children to pay bills, eat and survive.

But despite explaining the situation to officers who sympathised with her plight, she has been ordered to cough up for each PCN and set up a payment plan of £300 a month.

“It’s daylight robbery and I’ve not even polluted London air as I only travel as far as Crayford, but apparently this comes under a London borough,” she said.

She is not the only motorist to receive more than one ULEZ fine and have the bailiffs come knocking.

I haven’t paid anything and I won’t ever pay it

Alfie Fisher, who works in construction and commutes from his London home to jobs in Kent in Benenden, New Romney and Ashford, has received “countless letters”.

The 26-year-old says he has even had bailiffs turn up at his door but turns them away.

He added: “I haven’t paid anything and I won’t ever pay it; I don’t agree with it. I won’t let it change my life.

“I’ve had countless letters though - I’ve got a huge pile of them dedicated to ULEZ. It makes me laugh.”

When approached for comment over the non-compliance rates, TfL pointed out it had launched a campaign in January 2023 targeting drivers, including in Kent, to raise awareness of the upcoming change.

This, it claims, explained clearly who is affected and where and how the expanded scheme operates, including its hours of operations, daily charge and how to pay.

The ULEZ debate continues to rumble on and today a protest is due to take place in Crayford high street, near McDonald’s, between midday and 3pm.

It comes ahead of the London mayoral elections in which ULEZ has become a key campaign issue.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who continues to give an impassioned defence of his decision to push ahead with the scheme, will go to the polls next month in the mayoral elections on May 2.

He goes up against Tory rival Susan Hall, who is standing on a “Scrap ULEZ expansion on day one”.

Mr Khan warned Londoners the environment and net zero were crucial issues on the ballot paper saying “the choice couldn't be starker” and “London is at a crucial crossroads moment”.

But the absence of a choice in the matter by Kent residents who do not have a say in those elections has been raised in Parliament by one of his most vocal critics.

Last month, Dartford MP Gareth Johnson - who is opposed to the scheme - put forward a bill in Parliament aimed at reversing the charge.

He has described the daily charge as an “unfair tax” on working people which “hits the poorest hardest”.

But despite getting government backing for his private member’s bill his bid appears to have been blocked after Labour MPs talked it out.

In the year before ULEZ was expanded, between August 29, 2022, and August 29, 2023, a total of 69,598 PCNs were dished out to drivers with vehicles registered in Kent.

TfL is estimated to have made more than £6 million in eligible charges from those driving between the county and the capital in non-compliant vehicles during this time.

A TfL spokesperson said: “The ULEZ will not generate a surplus in the next few years as compliance is anticipated to increase.

“Any income generated is reinvested back into London’s transport network.”

The government body added that if a customer receives a penalty charge notice, they can challenge it by making a representation.

When a representation is received and considered, a request for further evidence may be made and the PCN will remain frozen while the information requested is provided.

However, this process can take up to three months, meaning it can be some time before an accurate figure of PCNs paid can be recorded.

ULEZ operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year except Christmas Day.