Month: November 2023

Transport for London (TfL) misled the public about the benefits of the capital’s ultra low emission zone (Ulez), according to a draft report leaked to The Sunday Telegraph.

An investigation was launched by watchdog the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) earlier this year after hundreds of people complained that the transport authority exaggerated the extent that the scheme had improved air quality.

A draft ASA report criticises “misleading” claims made about reducing levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in TfL’s radio and newspaper advertisements, and recommendations state that two complaints about two radio adverts and one in a newspaper are to be upheld, according to the Telegraph.

Following the ASA’s investigation, it found two adverts were “misleading” because they “did not clarify” claims NO2 levels had “reduced by nearly half” as a result of Ulez, and were based on “estimates or modelled scenarios” and not “actual figures”.

The second complaint set to be upheld found an advertisement that claimed deaths from pollution were higher in outer London failed to make clear that the area had already been covered by Ulez, the newspaper reported.

TfL, which is chaired by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, spent millions of pounds on marketing ahead of expanding the Ulez to cover the whole of the capital from August 29.

It is understood Mr Khan’s office will strongly reject any suggestion the adverts were misleading.

Vehicles used in the Ulez area that do not meet minimum emissions standards are liable for a £12.50 daily fee.

Figures released by TfL last month show around 60,000 vehicle owners a day are paying the £12.50 Ulez fee for using vehicles that do not meet minimum emissions standards.

Many opponents of Ulez expansion claim the scheme is aimed at generating revenue for TfL, but Mr Khan has insisted the policy is boosting air quality.

A TfL spokesman said: “We have received the draft recommendations from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and are strongly challenging them.

“The ASA is not challenging the science. The science is absolutely clear about the significant harm of air pollution on people’s health and that estimated premature deaths from air pollution are higher in outer London than in inner London.

“We are confident that the advertisement is accurate.

“Scientific analysis based on modelled scenarios and estimates is standard practice in the scientific community.

“We are meeting with the ASA to take them through the data and explain in detail how it is used.

“It remains the case that the expansion of the ultra low emission zone is playing a crucial role in the reduction of air pollution – improving air quality for everyone in London and reducing the harms to health associated with vehicle emissions.”

Mr Khan’s office was approached for a comment.

An Audi RS6 that was first used by Duke of Sussex as his personal car is currently up for sale.

The 2017 Audi RS6 was delivered to Harry shortly after the car was registered, with the royal covering around 4,500 miles with the car during his 15-month ownership. He also had the car during the time of his marriage to Meghan Markle in May 2018, too.

Though likely leased by Audi to Harry, the Audi RS6 had a list price of £91,530 when new, including additional extras such as a Daytona Grey Pearl paint, Alcantara seats and carbon interior trim.

This RS6’s number plate KX17 ZBN can be seen in pictures with Harry behind the wheel of the car.

The RS6 is of a C7 generation, sold between 2013 and 2018, and uses a 552bhp 4.0-litre V8 engine that allows for a 0-60mph time of under four seconds.

The duke’s Audi RS6 is currently up for sale with a private seller in Grantham on the online automotive marketplace Pistonheads for £42,000. Despite the royal connections, it’s priced similarly to those without the provenance.

This Audi RS6 last came up for sale in August 2018 shortly after Harry had returned the car, when the car was advertised for £71,900.

Matt Bird, deputy editor of Pistonheads, said: “The Audi RS6 is a firm favourite among performance car enthusiasts, and rightly so. Even with royal blood running through its fuel lines, this example is now available for less than half the car’s original purchase price.

“While most people would be forgiven for mistaking the RS6 as any other Audi-badged estate, the RS6 is genuinely capable of going toe-to-toe with most supercars when it comes to straight-line performance.”

The listing arrives just days after a 2004 Range Rover specified and used by the late Queen Elizabeth II sold for a record £132,750 at an auction over the weekend after the previous keeper – who only bought the car in July 2023 for £33,000 – managed to unearth its incredible provenance.

While the royal family are known for their connection to Land Rovers, they also frequently use Audis courtesy of a deal the German brand has with the household.

Harry and his brother William have been spotted in various Audi models over the years, while Princess Diana was known for using a 1994 Audi 80 Cabriolet.

A local authority made more than £478,000 from a low-emission zone over the first four months of the scheme, new figures show.

Glasgow City Council said it issued 20,134 fines between June and September this year, recovering £478,560.

The low-emission zone (LEZ) came into effect on June 1, and all vehicles entering the city centre must be compliant with emission standards or face a fine.

Last month, the Court of Session ruled the scheme was lawful and proportionate following a legal challenge from business owner William Paton, owner of Paton’s Accident Repair Centre in the Townhead area of the city.

The council said money recovered from fines will be used to reduce air pollution and help meet climate change targets.

A council spokesperson said: “Scottish LEZs operate by way of a penalty system, set in legislation to discourage non-compliant vehicle entry and to maximise the air quality benefits that can be delivered.

“Penalties are reduced by 50% if paid within 14 days, with all revenue above that incurred in running Glasgow’s LEZ scheme itself only used for activities that help reduce air pollution or contribute toward achieving our climate change targets.

“We would remind drivers that Glasgow’s LEZ is now in force and to familiarise themselves with its emissions requirements.”

The council website says the initial fine is £60 but it doubles with each subsequent breach of the rules by the same vehicle detected in the same LEZ.

Penalty charge rates are capped at £480 for cars and light goods vehicles, and £960 for buses and HGVs.

Fines are cut by 50% if paid within 14 days.

The figures show 89 of the £960 fines were issued in September, up from 21 in August, one in July and none in June.

Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Graham Simpson said: “It is clear that Glasgow’s low-emission zone has clobbered hard-pressed motorists for huge sums of money, only a few months since it was imposed.

“A rising number are being hit with the council’s new full-penalty fines, which total nearly £1,000.

“Ordinary Glaswegians, and in particular motorists and city centre businesses, are paying a huge price for this ill-thought-out policy.

“The SNP council must be upfront about how they intend to spend this money and other cities across Scotland must learn from how Glasgow’s low-emission zone has been so badly botched.”

Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Dundee are due to bring in LEZs next year.

Vehicle breakdowns caused by potholes have reached a record high due to the “substandard state” of local roads, figures suggest.

The RAC said it received 5,978 call-outs to breakdowns due to poor road surfaces in the UK between July and September.

That was the most for that quarter since the RAC began recording the data in 2006.

It represents a 46% increase from the 4,085 incidents in the same period last year.

Common vehicle problems caused by potholes include damaged shock absorbers, broken suspension springs and distorted wheels.

The cost of bringing pothole-plagued local roads in England and Wales up to scratch has been estimated at £14 billion.

Potholes are often formed when water enters cracks in the road surface, then freezes and expands.

Garage repair data analysed by the RAC shows drivers are paying an average of £440 if their car needs fixing after hitting a pothole for any damage more serious than a puncture.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “Our analysis of pothole-related breakdowns is sadly once again showing that the substandard state of the country’s local roads is causing a world of pain for drivers, let alone those on two wheels.

“Fortunately, the Government has promised £8.3 billion for local highways authorities which should give them the certainty of funding they need to be able to plan longer-term road maintenance work.

“We very much look forward to finding out exactly how the money will be allocated.

“We have long argued that it’s not just a question of filling potholes, it’s about getting the roads in the worst condition resurfaced.

“Then, it’s vital that more councils start to make greater use of surface treatments which can cost effectively extend the lives of these roads.”

Last month, the Government said it will provide £8.3 billion of funding to “fix the blight of potholes on roads up and down the country” after scrapping the HS2 rail project north of Birmingham.

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “The decision to redirect HS2 funding to other transport projects means that an extra £8.3 billion has been freed up to help local authorities fill potholes and resurface roads across the country, which is on top of the near £1 billion the Government already provides on average every year.

“We are investing a record amount of funding into tackling potholes and resurfacing roads, which will see highway maintenance funding to local authorities almost doubled over the next decade.”

Darren Rodwell, transport spokesperson for the Local Government Association (LGA), said: “The LGA has long-called for longer term funding to tackle the issues facing our roads and we believe that Government should award council highways departments with five-yearly funding allocations to give more certainty, bringing councils on a par with National Highways.

“Councils much prefer to invest in more cost-effective and resilient resurfacing than retrospectively dealing with potholes.

“The recently announced £8.3 billion additional funding for roads maintenance should help to bring more of our local road network up to scratch, and help deal with the £14 billion backlog of repairs.

“We await to see more details of the funding plan.”

Drivers were hit by “significant increases” in fuel retailers’ margins during the past two months, a new report suggests.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that by the end of October the differences between pump prices and the wholesale cost of petrol and diesel were “significantly above the long-term average”.

A continuation of the trend would “cause concern” about a lack of competition in the sector, the regulator added.

The RAC said the findings were “very disappointing” and demonstrate that “drivers are still being taken advantage of at the pumps”.

The CMA analysed retail spreads for supermarkets, which show the difference between average pump prices and benchmark wholesale costs for fuel.

Retail spreads are likely to be similar to margins, which are based on wholesale cost data provided by individual retailers.

The CMA said: “During September and October … we have seen significant increases in retail spread for both petrol and diesel.”

It added: “Given the link we have observed between retail spreads and retailer fuel margins, the increase in retail spreads in September and October suggests that fuel margins may have also increased.”

The CMA provided detailed figures for supermarket fuel retailers’ margins up to the end of August.

These show the figure for the first eight months of the year was 8.1%, despite a fall in the summer.

That is higher than the six preceding entire years, which ranged from around 4% in 2017 to 7.6% last year.

In July, the CMA recommended retailers provide live pump price information, and a price monitoring body is created.

The Government has pledged to legislate for both measures.

RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “It’s very disappointing that the CMA has found that major fuel retailers are still taking far bigger margins than they have done in the past, something we have been saying for a long time, as this means drivers are still being taken advantage of at the pumps.

“While supermarket margins may have fallen in the summer, our latest data shows they have more than made up for this since then and are currently taking very large margins.

“We believe the situation is currently worse than ever as the wholesale fuel market is down significantly, yet forecourt prices are falling like the proverbial feather.”

AA fuel price spokesman Luke Bosdet said: “Old habits die hard in the road fuel trade.

“Failure to pass on the full savings from lower wholesale costs to hard-pressed motorists, their families and businesses is unacceptable in a cost-of-living crisis.

“The Government needs to speed up the legislation that creates the statutory fuel price transparency scheme.”

The UK’s four major fuel-selling supermarkets are Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco.

They were each approached for a comment.

A motorcyclist who filmed himself pulling a wheelie and riding at an estimated 150mph has been given a one-year driving ban after being prosecuted with his own footage.

Jack Godfrey, 24, was stopped by a police officer who began to follow the superbike after noticing the letters on its registration plate were too small to read.

The officer saw Godfrey, of Basildon, speeding and undertaking before he stopped him on the A130 in Rettendon on July 15, Essex Police said.

During the stop, the officer noticed Godfrey had a camera fitted to the bike and seized its memory card, suspecting it had captured the rider’s driving.

When reviewed, the dashcam had captured footage of earlier journeys that day.

It showed the man riding along a number of roads at an “estimated top speed of 150mph whilst overtaking numerous vehicles and even performing a ‘wheelie’ whilst passing oncoming vehicles”, Essex Police said.

Godfrey admitted dangerous driving and was sentenced at Basildon Magistrates’ Court on November 3 to a one-year driving ban, the force said.

He was also ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work, to re-sit his driving test and pay £269 of fines and costs.

Pc Danny Wheeler, who led the investigation, said: “There is no doubt that the rider drove in a dangerous manner that day, using the public roads of Chelmsford as a racetrack with no consideration for himself and the safety of other road users.

“At one point, he nearly collided into a roundabout.

“The footage was horrific, so much so that during interview, the rider admitted that even he was shocked by it and admitted he’d been foolish.”

The court ordered no separate penalty for two other charges relating to the unlawful registration plate, which did not conform with DVLA regulations.

The number of fuel thefts from filling stations in Britain has soared, new figures suggest.

Data obtained by the RAC Foundation indicate that forecourt owners attempted to trace offenders over 39,563 incidents between July and September.

That is up 77% from 22,335 during the same period last year, and represents more than a fourfold increase on the total of 8,558 in those three months during 2019.

The RAC Foundation said the rise could be due to “systematic criminal activity”.

The figures relate to the number of requests made to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency for vehicle keeper data in relation to fuel theft.

Most of the incidents are likely to relate to drive-offs – also known as bilking – where someone fills up their vehicle with no intention of paying, and then leaves.

The British Oil Security Syndicate – which campaigns to reduce crime on forecourts – estimates the practice costs filling stations an average of £10,500 each per year.

The maximum penalty for drivers convicted of making off without payment, an offence under the Theft Act 1978, is two years in prison and/or an unlimited fine.

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: “Among all the recent media attention given to the epidemic of shoplifting, it should probably come as no surprise to find that the theft of petrol and diesel from forecourts looks to be a big and growing problem, and these figures might only hint at a much bigger issue.

“While it may be that the cost-of-living crisis is tempting some people to risk driving off without paying, the real headache for fuel suppliers is if this is a sign of more systematic criminal activity.

“The message to anyone tempted to bilk the service station must be ‘Don’t fill up if you can’t pay up’ because getting caught is a real possibility, and financial losses to companies ultimately lead to higher prices for us all.”

Nearly half of van drivers overload their vehicles despite the vast majority of them knowing the legal weight restriction for their light commercial vehicles.

That’s according to a new survey from Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, which found that 48 per cent of UK van drivers admitted to overloading their vans in the last year despite it carrying a fine of up to £300. Collectively, the nation’s van drivers could be risking a £703 million fine for putting too much weight into their vehicles.

Vans loaded beyond 30 per cent of their gross vehicle weight could see owners hit with a court summons and even a custodial sentence in the most extreme circumstances.

The survey of 1,000 van drivers found that 66 per cent of drivers aged between 18 and 24 had overloaded their van in the last year, followed by 63 per cent of over-65-year-olds.

The tradespeople most likely to overload their vans were carpenters, too, followed by builders, electricians and painter decorators.

A DVSA spokesperson said: “DVSA’s priority is to protect everyone from unsafe drivers and vehicles. It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure their vehicle is safe to drive. They should make sure they know the maximum permitted gross vehicle weight and limits on each axle of their vehicle.

“We take enforcement action against drivers and operators who risk people’s lives by overloading or not securely loading their vehicles. Our accessible online guidance provides everyone with the information they need to load their vehicle safely and avoid risking the lives of other road users.”

In the UK, the maximum gross vehicle weight for a light commercial vehicle is 3.5 tonnes or 4.25 tonnes for an alternatively-fuelled vehicle. Even exceeding this gross vehicle weight by 9.99 per cent carries a £100 if caught, too.

A Lamborghini Countach “hero car” famously used in a scene in The Wolf of Wall Street where it sustains major damage is heading to auction.

Described as being preserved in its “as-filmed”’ condition, the white supercar is one of the most famous cars to grace the silver screen in recent years.

Directed by Martin Scorsese, the Wolf of Wall Street (2013) follows the story of stockbroker Jordan Belfort – played by Leonardo DiCaprio – who was a highly controversial character on Wall Street during the 1980s and 90s.

One of the most famous scenes in the film involves this particular Lamborghini – a Countach 25th Anniversary Edition, which is one of just 658 ever produced to mark the Italian firm’s quarter of a century as a car maker. Only 12 are believed to have been made in this specification for the US market.

The car is said to star alongside DiCaprio for more than three minutes in the film, and is best known for the scene where Belfort drives the car while severely impaired by the drug Quaaludes. In the film, DiCaprio’s character crawls into the car and then recklessly drives home sustaining various damage on the way.

This Lamborghini was in fact used for the stunts, though Scorsese deemed the damage gathered in the action not to be serious enough, so ordered his crew to inflict more damage to the vehicle to make it appear more ‘wrecked’ in later scenes.

Since appearing in the film, the Countach is said to have been ‘meticulously preserved’ and is now being offered to the public for the first time, directly from one of the original filmmakers.

The Countach is going under the hammer with Bonhams at an auction coinciding with the Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 25. It is being sold with an estimate of $1.5m-2m (£1.24m-1.65m).

It will be accompanied by various film memorabilia, including documentation, a Jordan Belfort costume and a director’s chair and clapboard signed by Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie, who also starred in the film as Naomi Lapaglia, Belfort’s second wife.

A second Lamborghini Countach 25th Anniversary Edition in a matching specification was also used for filming, though didn’t sustain damage. Interestingly, this car is also heading to auction in New York on December 8 this year with RM Sotheby’s, carrying the same estimate of $1.5m-2m (£1.24m-1.65m).