Aftermarket March 2023

NEWS Garages in and around London could soon see customers’ older vehicles disappear from the roads with the announcement of a £110 million scrappage scheme designed to tie in with the expansion of the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in August. The ULEZ is set to expand across all London boroughs from 29 August 2023, and those driving non-compliant vehicles will need to pay £12.50 to use roads within the zone. The scrappage scheme is intended to encourage drivers or operators to scrap or retrofit vehicles that do not meet the ULEZ standards. There are two schemes running co- currently. The ULEZ car and motorcycle scrappage scheme is open to those on certain low income or disability benefits. £2,000 is available for scrapping a car, with £1,000 on offer for scrapping a motorcycle. For wheelchair accessible vehicles, £5,000 is being proffered to encourage owners to scrap or retrofit to the ULEZ standard. Meanwhile, the ULEZ van and minibus scheme caters for businesses with up to 10 employees, sole traders and charities with a registered address in London. The grant payment here is £5,000 - £9,500. Only applicants with vehicles that do not meet the ULEZ emissions standard will qualify for our new scrappage scheme. Those who benefitted from the previous TfL scrappage scheme will not be able to apply. The NFDA has decried the launch of the scheme, as NFDA Chief Executive Sue Robinson observed: “Whilst the NFDA supports and is encouraged by the London Mayor’s decision to provide a financial incentive towards exchanging ageing and non-compliant vehicles for newer, greener modes of transport, we are severely concerned that this will not be enough and the scheme will continue to have negative implications for a large proportion of motorists. The total budget allocated for the scrappage scheme will not be sufficient to make an impact the level at which the Mayor is expecting. “By increasing the Ultra-Low Emissions Zone to the entirety of London, it is forcing the residents of London to make a decision before they are ready. During a period of unprecedented financial struggle and in the midst of a cost of living crisis, families of low income may not be ready to make a transition to a newer vehicle even with the scrappage scheme.” She added: “NFDA remains firmly against the decision to extend the ULEZ, or at least the timescale of enforcement is far too soon. Without the availability of government incentives and the commitment for more investment towards EV infrastructure to adequately prepare London for a complete transfer to EV adoption, this restriction to older ICE and diesel vehicles should not be implemented.” 4 AFTERMARKET MARCH 2023 www.aftermarketonline.net ULEZ Scrappage scheme for London announced GEA warns on MOT equipment calibration rules change The rules around the calibration of some MOT equipment is changing, and from 1 April, Testing Stations will no longer be able to self-check roller brake testers (RBTs), plate brake testers (PBTs) or headlamp aim checking equipment (HBTs). The DVSA have advised that from that date, each Testing Station must only use the original equipment manufacturer or supplier for these calibrations, or a company that has taken over responsibility for equipment support, or a calibration specialist with proven technical competence to perform the calibration to the DVSA specification. Commenting on the change, GEA Chief Executive Julian Woods said: “If you run an MOT station, you will already know by now that the rules around calibration of some MOT equipment are set to change in the coming months. Ask your calibration company if they are GEA members and they have GEA accredited engineers for MOT calibrations.” For a full list of GEA members who meet these specifications, visit https://gea.co.uk/members-directory/ and select ‘GEA- accredited MOT engineers’.