ULEZ scrappage scheme to benefit London van and minibus owners

Van and minibus owners in London can receive up to £9,500 to ditch petrol and diesel vehicles as the expansion plan for London’s ULEZ Zone goes ahead.

The Mayor of London has launched a £110m scheme to clear London’s air, offering payments to successful applicants for scrapping or retrofitting vehicles that currently do not meet ULEZ emission standards. The scheme aims to stop the use of non-ULEZ emission compliant vehicles and boost use of cleaner forms of transport.

If your van or minibus does not meet the ULEZ emissions standards, you may be able to take advantage of this scheme. If your vehicle doesn’t comply with ULEZ regulations, you’ll need to pay a daily fee when driving within the area.

You can only apply for a grant payment to scrap (or in some cases, retrofit) a vehicle that does not meet the ULEZ emissions standards.

Under the scrappage scheme, sole traders, micro businesses with up to 10 personnel and charities can claim funds of up to £9,500 to scrap or retrofit a light van or minibus, or use it towards the purchase of environmentally-friendly transport.

If a prior grant has been acquired through the previous Transport for London van and minibus scrappage programme, then you cannot apply to the equivalent scheme again.

Grant payment options

The van and minibus scrappage scheme offers six options:

• Scrap a van – £5,000

• Scrap a minibus – £7,000

• Retrofit a van – £5,000

• Retrofit a minibus – £5,000

• Scrap a van and replace with an electric van like the Maxus eDeliver 3 or eDeliver 9 – £7,500

• Scrap a minibus and replace with an electric minibus – £9,500

Organisation and vehicle eligibility

The scheme is open to micro businesses (with up to 10 employees), sole traders and registered charities with a registered address within the 32 London boroughs or the City of London (Greater London Area). The following organisations can apply:

Micro businesses with:

10 or fewer employees. Up to £632,000 turnover or up to £316,000 balance sheet total in the preceding and current financial year and Companies House registration as an active company or VAT registered within the 32 London boroughs or City of London.

Sole traders who must be:

A self-employed person who owns and operates a business within the 32 London boroughs or the City of London.

Charities that are:

Registered with the Charities Commission as active within the 32 London boroughs or the City of London.

A vehicle you intend to scrap must be:

• A light van (up to and including 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight (GVW) or minibus (up to and including 5 tonnes GVW) registered to an eligible organisation for more than 12 calendar months before the start of the scrappage scheme on 30 January 2023

• Registered with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in the name of the business, sole trader or charity (if the vehicle is registered to an employee, director of the micro business or trustee of a charity you will need to provide confirmation of their link to the organisation)

• Insured for business use

• Certified with valid road tax and MOT

• ULEZ non-compliant (this includes pre-Euro 6 diesel vehicles and pre-Euro 4 petrol vehicles)

A replacement vehicle must be:

• A fully electric light van (up to and including 3.5 tonnes GVW) or a fully electric minibus (up to and including 5 tonnes GVW)

• Purchased or on a hire/lease contract that is at least two years long

• The same body type (van or minibus) as the vehicle that you scrapped

A vehicle you intend to retrofit must be:

• A light van (up to and including 3.5 tonnes GVW) or minibus (up to and including 5 tonnes GVW) registered to an eligible organisation for more than 12 calendar months before the start of the scrappage scheme on 30 January 2023

• Registered with the DVLA in the name of the business, sole trader or charity (if the vehicle is registered to an employee, director of the micro business or trustee of a charity you will need to provide confirmation of their link to the organisation)

• On the Clean Vehicle Retrofit Accreditation Scheme (CVRAS) register;(you will need to find your vehicle’s make and model on this list to make sure it can be retrofitted)

• Retrofitted by a CVRAS-approved company with an approved emissions reduction system

Call 01273 433480 to talk to an expert about your options today.

www.rivervale.co.uk