Caura’s the fastest way to pay London ULEZ charge. Download the app and pay in two taps.
Pay the London ULEZ charge with Caura
Driving into London for a day out with the family? Pay the ULEZ charge with Caura, ultra-fast.
Download the app, enter your number plate and pay, with no extra fees. Done. Sort the charge for the trip you took yesterday or today, or the one you’ll take tomorrow.
What is the London ULEZ charge?
To make London’s air cleaner, major measures have been put in place. The Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) arrived in 2019 and applies to all vehicles that don’t meet required emission standards. It was further extended in October 2021, dramatically increasing the size of the zone. People are being encouraged to use public transport, cycle or walk, in the name of cleaner air and a greener future.
The emissions standards are (vehicles not compliant with these standards have to pay the charge):
What you need to know
It's a daily charge, drivers entering the charging zone during operating hours need to pay once for each day. You can drive in and out multiple times per day, for one single payment.
ULEZ charge times
ULEZ operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But it’s free on Christmas day. One upside for the annual trip to the in-laws.
How much is the ULEZ charge?
The ULEZ charge costs £12.50 for everyone, with the same fee payable if you pay in advance, on the day, or the day after.
Fines for ULEZ
Pay the ULEZ charge within three days of passing through the zone, or you’ll be fined. Transport for London (TfL) cameras are placed at entrances and exits to the zone.
There’s a £160 fine if you don’t pay the ULEZ penalty charge within three days, and you’ve got 28 days to pay. It goes down to £80 if you get it to TfL in 14 days.
TfL sends you a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) if you’ve got a fine. If you don’t pay it in 28 days, then TfL issues a Charge Certificate for double the original fine: now £240. Let’s all steer clear of this.
ULEZ charge exemptions
Exempt from the charges are:
Pay your clean air charges in seconds
Where is the ULEZ?
The ULEZ impacts some 3.8 million people within the bounds of the North and South circular roads.
Some of the residential areas now within the recently expansed zone:
How do I know if I'm about to enter the ULEZ?
Signs let you know that ULEZ is coming up, and how long you’ve got before you cross into the zone.
Pay the ULEZ charge with Caura
It just takes a few seconds to pay the ULEZ charge with Caura. Two taps and you’re done. Download the app, find ULEZ under City Charges and pay. Stash all the receipts in the app, just in case you need to check back.
If you need to sort both ULEZ and Congestion Charge, you can pay for them in the same, single transaction. One app. Two taps. Save your time for doing things that are more meaningful.
Automate payments with Caura AutoPay
A regular into the ULEZ? Set up AutoPay for free! TfL will then (through our app) automatically charge you the lowest rate every time you drive into the zone.
One app for everything car
We don’t just deal with city charges. Caura can help you sort everything from vehicle tax to insurance – life’s too short to waste time on multiple websites. The app makes car admin easy.
Questions?
Find answers to common questions here. If you can't find what you're looking for then email us on support@caura.com and we'll get back to you.
Yes. To enjoy the benefits of Caura, like timely reminders for tax and insurance, and ultrafast city charge and toll payments, you’ll need to create an account. This is so we can let you know about important expiry dates and booking details.
You can’t currently change your email address on Caura (but we are working on it). As a workaround, you can log out of your current account and sign up with a new email address. We won’t be able to transfer the history over.
Easily done. Just tap ‘Forgot Password’ on the Log In screen - we’ll send you a password reset link via your registered email address. If you used your Google or Apple profile details (instead of an email address) to create your account, you’ll need to continue to use this sign-in method.
Your account may be suspended as a precaution if we see evidence of fraud or a violation of our terms of service. Please email support@caura.com or send us a message in-app, and we can investigate this with you.
Please email support@caura.com or send us a message in-app, and we can take care of that for you. Please feel free to let us know why you want to leave, as we’re always working to improve Caura for drivers like you.
To add a vehicle, simply swipe to the left on your current vehicle or tap the ‘+’ icon on the Home screen. To remove a vehicle, tap and hold on the vehicle image.
All vehicles registered with the DVLA should show on Caura. Please make sure you are entering a valid number plate recognised by the DVLA. If the problem persists please email support@caura.com.
If you have made the update on Caura (e.g. paid for tax on Caura), it should update automatically within a few days. If it doesn't, you can pull down the image of your vehicle from the Home screen, which will refresh the app.
Caura notifications help keep you updated on any upcoming renewal or expiry dates for your vehicle, as well as important transaction details. If you’re an AutoPay user, you’ll need to have them on so we can contact you in case of failed payment or changes to your AutoPay status.
If you turned off push notifications, you can enable again by going to Settings on your device and scrolling down to Apps and selecting Caura. From there, simply switch on ‘Allow Notifications’ from within the Permissions section.
Only Caura AutoPay users will receive notifications confirming they have entered a charging zone, and this currently only applies to London Congestion, ULEZ & LEZ charges. When you drive into these London charging zones, TfL automatically recognises your vehicle and up to 5 days later they notify us of your journey. We’ll then let you know and automatically take payment from your card.
Caura helps keep you updated on upcoming renewal or expiry dates for you vehicle, including tax, MOT and insurance. You’ll need to manually add your insurance renewal date into the app, MOT and tax reminders will be generated automatically.
Caura AutoPay currently covers London’s city charges. AutoPay lets you automatically pay London’s ULEZ and Congestion Charge. It also covers London’s LEZ for HGVs. When you drive into the charging zones, TfL automatically recognises your vehicle and up to 5 days later they notify us of your journey. We’ll then charge your payment card. No need to pay manually.
Go to the City Charges screen in-app and tap Complete Setup. Caura AutoPay is free to set up.
When you set up AutoPay, you are covered from the day after (i.e. tomorrow). If you went into any of the charging zones on the day you set up, you should pay your charge manually in-app.
If you’re changing your registration plate (whether it’s for your existing vehicle or a new vehicle), you need to cancel AutoPay and set it up again. To do this, request a cancellation of your current AutoPay in-app. Then to remove your current vehicle reg, press and hold the vehicle image on the home screen. To add a new vehicle, swipe to the left on the home screen.
Go to your AutoPay account in-app (by going to the City Charges screen). From your AutoPay account, tap the current payment method selected. You can then choose to change your payment method tied to your AutoPay, either select an existing payment method or add a new card to Caura.
You can request cancellation from the AutoPay account section in-app. When you request a cancellation, we’ll get back to you to confirm your decision. It takes a day for AutoPay to be cancelled. You’ll lose the benefits of AutoPay which include automatic payments when you drive into any London charging zone. Once you cancel, charges may come through for the days prior to cancellation.
If you sell your vehicle, you’ll need to tell us to cancel as AutoPay will remain active, linked to your payment card.
You can view any payments you’ve made by going to the History tab in Caura. Tap on any payment in the list to view more detail. From there, you can even export a receipt to your email.
You can add, remove and set your default payment method via the Payment Methods screen, accessed via the Account tab. To remove a payment method, swipe it to the left. To set a payment method as the default option, swipe it to the right.
Go to your AutoPay account in-app (by going to the City Charges screen). From your AutoPay account, tap the current payment method selected. You can then choose to change your payment method tied to your AutoPay, either select an existing payment method or add a new card to Caura.
Clean Air Zones are coming soon to many UK cities, helping our air stay fresh for future generations. All vehicles are allowed in CAZ zones – but if their emissions are above a certain level, they’ll have to pay to pass through.
You can learn more about different Clean Air Zones and the charges in place here.
You can find details of all active and planned Clean Air Zones here.
Currently, you can pay for Birmingham’s Class D Clean Air Zone charge, as well as the London Ultra Low Emission Zone charge and the Oxford Zero Emission Zone charge, in two-taps on Caura.
We’re working hard to bring more Clean Air Zones to Caura very soon. We’ll notify users via email or in-app notification when new zones launch, as well as communicate this on social media. In the meantime, if there is a charge payment you really want to see on Caura, let us know by emailing support@caura.com (it may just be what we focus on next!).
There are four types (class) of Clean Air Zone. The class of Clean Air Zone dictates which vehicles have to pay for entering the zone.
For each of the class types, the following non-compliant vehicle types have to pay:
Please refer to the class type of the Clean Air Zone to understand which vehicle types have to pay.
You will also be able to see exactly what you have to pay for a given Clean Air Zone, based on your vehicle’s type and emissions.
The Clean Air Zones use ANPR cameras to automatically detect your vehicle when you drive into the charging zone. Look out for signs that clearly indicate the boundary of the zone.
If you try to pay for a charge that you're exempt from then Caura will not process the transaction, and you will not be charged.
Currently, you can pay for either today, tomorrow or yesterday in-app on Caura. Make sure you pay for the right date for any trips you make, as we’re unable to offer a refund for any payments made for the wrong day by mistake.
Caura charges no additional fee to pay for any Clean Air Zone, or to make any other transaction via the app. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider.
If you’ve paid for the wrong day, unfortunately we aren’t able to offer a refund. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider. We’re unable to recover funds so we aren’t able to offer a refund. If you paid for a charge unnecessarily then you can request a refund from the zone operator, referencing the transaction ID on your payment receipt in the Caura app.
You can view any payments you’ve made by going to the History tab in Caura. Tap on any payment in the list to view more detail. From there, you can even export a receipt to your email.
The ULEZ is London's Ultra Low Emissions Zone. It is designed to reduce the number of high-polluting vehicles driving within London. You can learn more about the ULEZ here.
The new, larger ULEZ zone is 18x larger than the old one (extended in October 2021), and operates inside of the North Circular (A406) and South Circular (A205) roads. You will not need to pay the ULEZ charge if you drive on the North or South Circular roads.
The ULEZ zone operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year except Christmas Day.
The daily charge is £12.50 for most vehicle types, including cars, motorcycles and vans up to 3.5 tonnes.
Heavier vehicles including lorries, buses and coaches will be charged £100 per day.
The fine for not paying is £160 per day, reduced to £80 if you pay within 14 days.
Caura is the fastest way to pay, it takes two seconds via the app, and we charge no additional fee. Getting your car setup on Caura takes less than 30 seconds, and you can manage all your vehicle admin, from tolls to tax, in-app with Caura.
Currently, you can pay for either today, tomorrow or yesterday in-app on Caura. Make sure you pay for the right date for any trips you make, as we’re unable to offer a refund for any payments made for the wrong day by mistake.
Caura tells you if your vehicle is exempt from the Congestion or ULEZ charges. Simply select "City Charges" from the Home screen for your vehicle and you'll see any exemptions you have. You can also check if you’re exempt here.
Local residents are no longer exempt, as of October 25th 2021. All historic vehicles are exempt from the charge.
TfL use ANPR cameras to automatically detect your vehicle when you drive into the ULEZ zone. Look out for signs that clearly indicate the boundary of the zone (between North Circular (A406) and South Circular (A205) roads).
Caura AutoPay is the easiest way to gain peace of mind over whether you need to pay ULEZ or not.
AutoPay lets you automatically pay London’s ULEZ and Congestion Charge. It also covers London’s LEZ zone for HGVs. When you drive into the charging zones, TfL automatically recognises your vehicle and up to 5 days later they notify us of your journey. We’ll then charge your payment card. No need to worry or pay manually.
Yes, Caura is the fastest way to pay for the London Congestion Charge, and you can pay for London’s ULEZ and Congestion Charge with the same two-tap transaction.
Yes, Caura lets any vehicle pay for the London ULEZ charge, including commercial vehicles and HGVs.
Please note the price of the ULEZ charge can vary depending on vehicle type and emissions standards.
If you have driven into the ULEZ zone and not made a payment for that day, and you are not exempt, you will face a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN).
Here are some other reasons why you may have been fined:
Currently all vehicles are liable to the same level of fine, which is £160. If you pay within 14 days of receiving the fine it’s £80, however if you pay after 14 days then you will have to pay the full £160.
You will need to visit the TfL website and navigate to the 'penalty charges for ULEZ' page.
Caura charges no additional fee to pay for the ULEZ charge, or to make any other transaction via the app. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider.
If you’ve paid for the wrong day or vehicle, unfortunately we aren’t able to offer a refund. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider (e.g. TfL). We’re unable to recover funds so we aren’t able to offer a refund. However, you can apply to TfL for a refund. You'll need your receipt details, which can be found in the History tab on Caura.
You can view any payments you’ve made by going to the History tab in Caura. Tap on any payment in the list to view more detail. From there, you can even export a receipt to your email.
Each ULEZ charge payment covers you for all your vehicle’s journeys made in the zone for that day.
Beware of double charging: each day the charge expires at 00:00. Meaning if you drive into the ULEZ zone at 23:59 and leave the next day at 00:01 you all be liable to pay for two ULEZ charges.
The Congestion Charge is a Transport for London fee for driving in central London at certain times of the day. You can learn more about the charge here.
The Congestion Charge zone covers most of central London. You can find a map of the zone here.
The charge applies 7:00-18:00 Monday-Friday and 12:00-18:00 on weekends and Bank Holidays.
There is no charge between Christmas Day and New Year's Day inclusive.
The Congestion Charge costs £15.00 per day if you pay in advance or the same day as your journey through the zone.
If you pay by midnight the following day the charge is £17.50.
Caura is the fastest way to pay for all London city charges, including the Congestion Charge. You can also pay for London’s ULEZ and Congestion Charges with the same two-tap transaction.
Currently, you can pay for either today, tomorrow or yesterday in-app on Caura. Make sure you pay for the right date for any trips you make, as we’re unable to offer a refund for any payments made for the wrong day by mistake.
If you can prove you live in within the Congestion Charge zone, you will be entitled to a 90% residents’ discount.
The following are exempt from the Congestion Charge altogether, subject to a £10 annual registration fee:
Follow this link to register for exemption.
Caura charges no additional fee to pay for the Congestion Charge, or to make any other transaction via the app. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider.
If you’ve paid for the wrong day, unfortunately we aren’t able to offer a refund. We don’t take any of the money for your payment and once it’s made it goes straight to the end provider (e.g. TfL). We’re unable to recover funds so we aren’t able to offer a refund.
You can view any payments you’ve made by going to the History tab in Caura. Tap on any payment in the list to view more detail. From there, you can even export a receipt to your email.