London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been identified as a victim of a scam after being convicted for failing to tax a 24-year-old Nissan Micra that he says he does not own. The case, brought by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), resulted in Khan being fined £220 in August by a magistrate’s court in Herefordshire under the Single Justice Procedure—a fast-track system established in 2015 to handle low-level criminal offences in private hearings.

Court documents revealed that the Nissan Micra, first registered in 2002, was untaxed as of September of the previous year and was spotted without valid tax on January 24. The DVLA initiated legal proceedings, listing Khan as the keeper of the vehicle because his name and date of birth appeared on official records. Letters from the DVLA regarding the unpaid tax were reportedly sent to Gordon Ramsay’s East London restaurant instead of the nearby Transport for London (TfL) offices where Khan's team is based.

City Hall officials and the Mayor’s office maintained that Khan and Transport for London were not the owners of the car, insisting the conviction was a result of fraudulent activity. According to Khan’s spokesperson, this was not the first instance of the mayor being wrongly linked to a vehicle ownership due to scams. The spokesperson described the incident as a criminal scam, adding that the DVLA was already aware of such cases.

The controversy emerged in the wake of Khan’s expansion of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to cover the entire city, a move that sparked protests among motorists. Some protesters reportedly threatened to register their vehicles in the mayor’s name as a form of protest, presumably to make him liable for the daily £12.50 congestion charge associated with the ULEZ.

Following a review, the DVLA agreed to withdraw the prosecution, although the formal reversal requires a court hearing, scheduled to take place at Hereford Magistrates’ Court. The DVLA has stated it is investigating the circumstances around the prosecution and is cooperating with authorities to address the matter.

The use of the Single Justice Procedure in this case has also drawn attention amid a broader government review of the system, which has faced criticism for its handling of numerous low-level cases, some of which resulted in wrongful convictions affecting vulnerable individuals.

Khan’s office confirmed that the vehicle’s tax was subsequently renewed in February, and City Hall plans to pursue overturning the conviction entirely once the formal withdrawal process is complete. The case highlights ongoing concerns about the accuracy of vehicle registration records and the potential for exploitation through misuse of official documentation.