Have you needlessly paid this motoring charge? Hundreds of Brits have forked out a total of £6,000 this year for no reason

CENTRAL London drivers are unnecessarily paying the £11.50 Congestion Charge, because the zone has not been clearly signposted.

Just over 500 Brits mistakenly paid a total of £5,934 over the last 12 months, according to car maintenance site Fixter.

Half of those surveyed said the zone should be better signposted, with over a third admitting that they had forgotten to pay the fee.

Four out of five people were handed a £160 fine for doing so – the maximum penalty for not paying the Charge.

Despite this, two thirds of drivers want the Congestion Charge fee to increase to an average cost of £21.

Over 70 per cent would also like to see the initiative rolled out across other UK cities, with a quarter opting for Birmingham.

A fifth wants Liverpool to adopt the Congestion Charge and 15 per cent would like to see it in Edinburgh.

Nitrogen dioxide levels have reduced by over half since the charge was introduced in London, as well as a 12 per cent drop in overall emissions.

Owners of high-polluting motors also have to pay £10 a day to enter central London in addition to the Congestion Charge.

This so-called T-Charge operates during the same periods, but will be replaced next April by the 24/7 Ultra Low Emission Zone that has stricter standards on emissions.

Clean Air Zones are planned to be introduced across British town and city centres in 2019 too.

Matt Lewis, Fixter spokesperson, said: “After looking into the impact of the congestion charge in London, we wanted to get some insight from those who actually travel in and out of London.

“It was fascinating to hear just how many Britons have accidentally paid the charge due to confusion.

“It certainly pays to pay attention in London and, if in doubt, Google where you are and if you should be paying.”