Dartford Crossing Dart Charge: prices, payment and fines

What you need to do

If you drive across the Dartford Crossing, the link that carries the M25 over the River Thames east of London, between 6:00 and 22:00, you must pay the Dart Charge. Nobody will stop you at a barrier: the toll booths were removed in 2014 and the crossing is now monitored by cameras. The responsibility to pay is entirely yours.

In practice, before or soon after your journey:

1. Check whether your crossing falls between 6:00 and 22:00.
2. Pay online on GOV.UK, by phone, by post (in advance only) or with cash at a Payzone store.
3. Do it in advance or, at the latest, by midnight the day after you cross.

All you need is your vehicle registration number. You do not need an account to pay.

When the charge applies

According to GOV.UK, you must pay if you use the Dartford Crossing between 6:00 and 22:00. The charge applies every day, including weekends and bank holidays.

Journeys between 22:00 and 6:00 remain free. The Department for Transport confirmed in its charge update that night crossings, motorcycles at any time and the bicycle pick up service stay free, because there is no need to manage demand at those times.

The reason for the charge is congestion. The government says the crossing is used by an average of over 150,000 vehicles every day and up to 180,000 on the busiest days, well beyond its design capacity.

Prices from 1 September 2025

New charges apply from 1 September 2025. The government described the increase for car drivers as a maximum of £1, the first rise for all vehicles since 2014. How much you pay depends on your vehicle class and on how you pay.

Class A: motorcycles, mopeds and quad bikes

• One-off payment: free
• Pay as you go: free
• Pre-pay: free

Class B: cars (including trailers), motorhomes and minibuses with 9 or fewer seats including the driver’s seat

• One-off payment: £3.50
• Pay as you go: £3.50
• Pre-pay: £2.80

Class C: buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles with 2 axles

• One-off payment: £4.20
• Pay as you go: £4.20
• Pre-pay: £3.60

Class D: buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles with more than 2 axles

• One-off payment: £8.40
• Pay as you go: £8.40
• Pre-pay: £7.20

For classes C and D, GOV.UK says you should count droppable axles whether they are up or down, and only count trailer axles for articulated vehicles. A car towing a caravan or trailer stays in class B.

How big is the pre-pay discount?

Official pages do not agree. The current GOV.UK payment page says a pre-pay account gives a discount of up to 20%, which matches the gap between £3.50 and £2.80 for a car. Older material, including the government’s original Dart Charge announcement and the Dartford Borough Council page, still says a pre-pay account saves up to a third on every crossing. Those figures date from before the 2025 price change, so rely on the current price list above.

How to pay

GOV.UK lists 3 ways to pay.

One-off payment

No account is needed. Pay by midnight the day after you cross, or pay in advance for future crossings. A payment for a future crossing is valid for 12 months and is used automatically the next time you cross. This is the simplest option for occasional visitors.

Pay as you go account

Set up a Dart Charge account and add a payment card. Payment is taken automatically from your card at midnight the day after you cross. The price is the same as a one-off payment, but you cannot forget to pay.

Pre-pay account

Set up an account and add money to it. Each crossing is deducted automatically from your balance at the reduced rate. According to the pre-pay application form page, accounts are opened with an initial £15 deposit, though you can pay more. The government says you can set up auto top-ups and add multiple vehicles. If you later want to switch between pre-pay and pay as you go, you have to close your account and open a new one.

Other ways to pay

• Online: on the GOV.UK Dart Charge service.
• By phone: Dart Charge contact centre, 0300 300 0120 (textphone 18001 0300 300 0120), every day from eight in the morning to eight in the evening.
• Cash: at a Payzone store.
• By post: to set up an account, pay in advance or top up. Postal payment works in advance only. The government gives the address as Dart Charge Customer Services, PO Box 842, Leeds, LS1 9QF.

The Dart Charge service also lets you check which crossings you have paid for, which is useful if you are unsure whether a payment went through.

Controls and fines

How crossings are recorded

The government explains that automatic number plate recognition cameras and electronic tags record details of all vehicles using the crossing. These are checked against DVLA records to apply the correct charge. Pre-pay account holders are charged automatically; for everyone else, the system looks for a matching payment.

The penalty

If a crossing is unpaid by midnight the day after, a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) is issued. According to GOV.UK:

• the fine is £70
• it is reduced to £35 if you pay within 14 days
• it is increased to £105 if you do not pay it
• you must pay within 28 days of receiving the PCN
• the fine comes in addition to the original crossing charge

The PCN payment service warns that if you neither pay nor challenge, you will incur further charges and may risk a court order against you.

Paying or challenging a PCN

You need your vehicle registration number and your PCN reference number. You can pay online or by phone through the PCN contact centre on 0300 1313 120 (textphone 18001 0300 1313 120), every day from eight in the morning to eight in the evening. This is a different number from the main contact centre.

You cannot challenge a PCN by phone. Challenges are accepted only online, using the challenge option, or in writing by completing the representation slip on the PCN and sending it to Dart Charge Enforcement, PO BOX 842, Leeds, LS1 9QF. You must include evidence showing why the PCN was issued incorrectly.

Foreign vehicles

The Dart Charge applies to foreign registered vehicles exactly as it does to UK ones: same hours, same prices, same deadline. Drivers from Spain, Germany, the Netherlands or Italy can pay online or by phone with their registration number.

The government states that evasion is likely to involve both UK and non UK registered vehicles. The number plate recognition system recognises non UK vehicles, and a European debt recovery agency supports the recovery of outstanding charges, an approach the government says has worked for the central London Congestion Charge. Highways England has also answered a Freedom of Information request about foreign vehicles crossing without paying and how many were successfully chased.

Note that the disability exemption is tied to free UK vehicle tax, so it is checked against UK records. A foreign vehicle has no automatic route to that exemption.

Exceptions and discounts

Who does not pay

• Motorcycles, mopeds and quad bikes.
• Vehicles that get free UK vehicle tax because of a disability. The vehicle is checked automatically when you cross and you do not need to do anything.
• Anyone crossing between 22:00 and 6:00.

The government adds that the full list of exemptions is set out in legislation.

Local resident discount

If you live within the council boundaries of Dartford or Thurrock, you can apply for a discount. You need an account and must pay for crossings in advance. From 1 September 2025 the annual fee is:

• £25 a year for unlimited crossings
• £12.50 a year for 50 crossings

On the £12.50 plan, if you run out you can pay £6.25 for 25 additional crossings or £12.50 to upgrade to unlimited crossings. The total you pay in a year will not exceed £25. If you do not pay the annual fee, the discount is removed and you pay the one-off charge until you reapply.

If your number plate changes, update your account and send your V5C through the contact form or by post to Dart Charge, PO Box 309, Leeds, LS11 1HJ. You lose the discount if you do not send the V5C within 6 weeks of updating your account.

Other charges are separate

The Dart Charge covers the Dartford Crossing only. The government reminds drivers that other charges, such as the HGV Levy or the central London Congestion Charge, must be paid in the normal way. If your trip continues into central London, Transport for London runs its own penalty system: an unpaid Congestion Charge leads to a £180 PCN, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days and rising to £270 with a Charge Certificate.

Checklist before the trip

• Note when you expect to cross: between 6:00 and 22:00 you pay, between 22:00 and 6:00 you do not.
• Check your vehicle class: a car with a trailer or caravan is class B.
• Decide how to pay: a one-off payment of £3.50 for a car, or a pre-pay account at £2.80 if you cross often.
• Pay in advance or set a reminder for the deadline: midnight the day after you cross.
• Keep your registration number handy, exactly as it appears on the plate.
• Use the online service to check which crossings you have paid for.
• If a PCN arrives, pay within 14 days to cut the fine to £35, or challenge it online or in writing with evidence.
• Remember that the Congestion Charge and other levies are paid separately.