London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been convicted of keeping an untaxed vehicle and ordered to pay more than £340 despite insisting the car has never belonged to him.
Lord Khan was found guilty in his absence at Herefordshire Magistrates’ Court over a 24-year-old Nissan Micra which DVLA records linked to his name and date of birth.
The Mayor has strongly denied having any connection to the vehicle, with City Hall claiming he has fallen victim to a scam involving somebody falsely registering a car in his name.
The court imposed a £220 fine and £85 prosecution costs, while Khan was also ordered to pay £35.84 in outstanding vehicle tax.
City Hall says Mayor targeted in scam
A spokesperson for Lord Khan said: “This is a scam, which is a crime. It’s not the first time the Mayor has been victim of a scam involving people falsely stating that Sadiq is the owner of a vehicle.
“Such behaviour is illegal, and the DVLA are aware.”
City Hall said neither the Mayor nor Transport for London owns the Nissan Micra.
Correspondence relating to the vehicle was reportedly sent to the wrong address in Endeavour Square, Stratford, with DVLA letters instead reaching a Gordon Ramsay restaurant near TfL’s offices.
The DVLA brought the prosecution after the Micra’s vehicle tax expired last September.
The agency told the court that Khan’s name and date of birth appeared on its records and that a letter asking him to confirm whether he owned the vehicle went unanswered.
Convicted in his absence
Court papers show Khan did not enter a plea before magistrate Surinder Gidda found the case proved in his absence.
The dispute comes after opponents of the expansion of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) previously threatened to register vehicles using the Mayor’s details as a form of protest.
Khan can now apply for the proceedings to be reopened, allowing him to challenge the conviction and argue that he was wrongly identified as the vehicle’s keeper.
If the case is reopened, he could enter a not guilty plea or ask the DVLA to withdraw the prosecution.
The DVLA can also seek to have the case reconsidered.
