A pensioner has been left out of pocket after he was told his new diesel car was compliant with Bristol’s Clean Air Zone - and then he was fined for taking his wife to hospital. Colin Lovell is now fuming that his Euro6 diesel car is compliant with Bath’s Clean Air Zone rules - but not Bristol’s, meaning he has to pay £9 every time he ventures into Bristol.
The 87-year-old bought his 2015-plate Mercedes C220 car from a dealership in Farmborough, near Bath, in December and asked at the time if it was compliant with the Clean Air Zone and was that because it was a Euro6 diesel, it would be. However, Mr Lovell received a penalty notice after driving his wife to an appointment at the BRI in Bristol - and had his appeal against the fine turned down.
Mr Lovell, from Nailsea, then discovered that his is one of thousands of vehicles that have been deemed to be compliant with Bath’s Clean Air Zone, but not Bristol’s, leaving him angry. “When I left the dealership it’s a Euro6 diesel, I asked the sales person could I drive it into Bristol and was told ‘of course you can, it’s Euro6’,” he said.
