CChargepass.com

What is the London Congestion Zone?

The London Congestion Charge is a daily charge payable by motorists travelling into or within the London Congestion Charge Zone.

The main objectives of the Congestion Charge are to reduce traffic congestion and to raise funds for investment in London's transport system. The Zone came into operation in Central London in 2003. The system is run on an automatic basis using CCTV and Automatic Number Plate Recognition.

A network of cameras read vehicle number plates as you:

•Enter the zone

•Leave the zone

•Drive within the zone

The cameras photograph the car's registration number and register it for payment prior to midnight the day of entry

Where & When

Vehicles which drive within a clearly defined zone of central London between the hours of 07:00 and 18:00, Monday to Friday, have to pay a Congestion Charge

How it works

The Congestion Charge is £10 plus a £2 admin fee from CChargepass. If you do not pay the Congestion Charge by midnight on the following charging day, a penalty of £120 will be issued. If the penalty is paid within 14 days the fine is reduced to £60. The Car Rental Company, as the registered owner, will pay the fine. The Car Rental Company will then charge your credit card for the penalty (£60) and an admin fee of £30-£50. This means each day you travel into London can cost you as much as £110

Solution

Register with CChargepass.com for an annual fee of just £15 and each day we will text you to ask if you have entered or intend to enter the Congestion Zone. Reply "Yes" and we will charge your credit card for that day’s entry. No reply and your card will not be charged

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CChargepass.com is an online company which communicates with its car rental clients primarily by mobile phone using SMS text message.

Many renters visiting London are unaware of the London Congestion Charge. Others are confused about the location of the Charge Zone, the hours of operation, the amount of the Charge and how it should be paid.

We make paying the Congestion Charge easy for car renters traveling into or within the London Congestion Charge Zone by handling it on your behalf.

We do this by:

Sending you a daily SMS text message during the car rental period asking if you have entered, or will enter, the Congestion Zone

If you reply with your registered PIN, we will charge your credit card and pay the Charge on your behalf.

You will receive confirmation of payment by SMS text and email.

If you have not entered the Zone, there is no need to reply. We will take no action

The way it works:

First you register with .www.CChargepass.com giving us your

Name Credit - card details - Mobile telephone number - Email address -Car rental dates

We charge you:

A one-off Annual Registration Fee of £15. This Registration Fee covers our reminder and administration services for one year, no matter how many times you visit London.

The Congestion Charge fee plus a Daily Fee of £2 for each day that you enter the Congestion Charge Zone.

For example, on the day of travel we will charge your card £12.00 - the standard £10 London Congestion Charge and our fee of £2. If you fail to pay on the day of entry, but pay before the end of the following charging day, we will charge your card £14 - the standard late payment £12 charge and our fee of £2.

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Map of Congestion Charge Zone - Click on map below and go to the Transport for London website

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Frequently Asked Questions - Information supplied by CChargepass.com - might not be up to date

Question: I am driving into London when it is dark - will the cameras identify my car? Answer: Yes, the cameras work in darkness and all weather conditions during the Congestion Zone operating hours of 7:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday.

Question: I am going to travel into the London Congestion Zone several times during the same day. Will I be charged each time? Answer: No, you can enter and exit the Zone as many times as you require in one day. You are only charged once.

Question: I am going into the London Congestion Zone to stay at a hotel. If I remain at the hotel but do not exit the Zone, will I have to pay? Answer: Yes, the charge is for movement into, within, or out of the Zone. However, no charge is made if your car is parked for a full day within the Congestion Zone without being moved.

Question: Hertz has a rental location on Edgware Road, one of the routes through the Zone which is exempt from the Congestion Charge. If I pick up a vehicle there will I be charged? Answer: Depending on where you are driving too, Hertz will usually charge you for the London Congestion Zone Charge for the pick up date. When you return it may be possible to enter their garage without entering the Zone provided you remain on the Edgware Road. You need to clarify this at the time you pick up your vehicle.

Question: I am renting a car. Will the car rental company pay the Congestion Charge? Answer: No, the car rental company may pay the first day but will not pay thereafter (you need to clarify this at the time you pick up your vehicle). It is the renter’s responsibility to pay the charge on subsequent days.

Question: I am renting a car from Avis and will be travelling into the Zone over the weekend. Do I have to pay the congestion charge? Answer: No, the London Congestion Zone operates only from Monday to Friday. There is no charge on weekends or public holidays.

Question: I am renting an electric vehicle from Europcar. Do I need to pay the Congestion Charge? Answer: It depends on the vehicle. Electric cars are exempt, but you must confirm this at the rental counter when you pick up your vehicle. The same applies to hybrid vehicles.

Question: What happens if I forget to pay the Congestion Charge on the day I enter the Zone? Answer: You will be able to pay up to midnight on the following charging day. In these circumstances the Charge is increased to £12 (as opposed to £10).

Question: What is the advantage of registering with CChargepass.com? Answer: When you register with CChargepass.com, we will contact you each rental day to find out if you have entered, or will enter, the Zone. If the answer is Yes, then we will charge your credit card and make the payment on your behalf. We take all the worry and inconvenience out of your trip. Remember, if you forget the car rental company will charge your card for the £60 plus their administration fee of £30-£50 (between £90 and £110 for each time you forget).

Question: What are the costs for using CChargepass.com? Answer: A one-off Annual Registration Fee of £15 payable on day of registering, plus a charge of £2 for each day you enter the Zone.

Question: What does Transport for London charge for the congestion zone? Answer: £10 per day provided you pay before midnight on the date of entry. £12 if you pay before midnight on the charging day following the day of entry.

Question: What does Transport for London do if I fail to pay the charge? Answer: They issue you with a fine of £120. If it is paid within 14 days, it is reduced to £60. If the fine is not paid within 28 days, it then increases to £180.

Question: Will the car rental company pay the fine to Transport for London? Answer: Yes, as the Registered Owner of the vehicle, the car rental company will be charged for the fine. They normally pay within 14 days and then charge your card for £60 plus an administration fee of between £30 and £60, depending on which car rental company you use.

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More Information about CChargepass.com

CChargepass.com is a company formed by Larry Dale Ursich to provide assistance to car renters who are either unaware of, or not familiar with, the Congestion Zone Charges in London.

Larry Ursich has worked in the airline, car rental and insurance industries in Europe for the past 30 years.

A consumer champion, in 2002 he founded www.insurance4carhire.com and introduced into the car rental travel market a low cost, niche insurance covering the excess on car rental as an alternative to the expensive excess waiver charges offered by car rental companies.

Insurance4carhire enjoyed rapid growth, supported by consistent endorsement in the mainstream newspapers, and was sold in December 2007 to Towergate Partnership, the largest independently owned insurance intermediary in Europe.

Based on Larry’s in-depth knowledge of the car rental industry, he has noted that car renters, particularly those from outside the UK, are driving their rental vehicles into the London Congestion Charge Zone, often without being aware of the Zone’s existence or lacking sufficient information about how to pay the charge. Often, they incur substantial additional expense by incurring penalty charges and administration fees charged by the car rental companies.

Looking at these difficulties, Larry has now entered into partnership with a leading mobile phone SMS text messaging company to set up a system which will allow CChargepass.com to manage payment of the charge on behalf of renters using text messaging.

Using their services the renter need never again worry or become confused about the Congestion Charge and the fear of incurring steep fines and additional car rental administration charges to add significantly to the cost of their trip.

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Information on this page supplied by CChargepass Ltd March 2011 and up to date information will be found at the CChargepass.com website

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