Residents urged to renew LUDS plans
HALTON residents who have not yet signed up for merseyflow’s auto-renew and Direct Debit system are being urged to renew their annual Local User Discount Scheme (LUDS) plans before they expire.
All eligible Halton residents need an active Local User Discount Scheme plan in place to benefit from their heavily discounted crossings on the Mersey Gateway and Silver Jubilee bridges.
The renewals period peaks in October each year in line with the anniversary of the Mersey Gateway Bridge approaching. Around 9,500 Halton residents have plans which are due to expire at the same time next month.
Halton residents also have the new option this year to make the switch to auto-renew their annual Local User Discount Scheme (LUDS) plan each year and pay by Direct
Debit, which makes the whole process much easier.
The easiest way to make the switch to auto-renew is to:
● log into your merseyflow account
● set up Direct Debit as your preferred payment method for your annual fee
● tick auto-renew your LUDS vehicle
By choosing autorenew and Direct Debit, these customers won’t need to upload their council tax, V5C and driving licence documents every year (unless they move house, change their vehicle or bank account) and will have no need to update their payment card details when it expires.
For residents who need to renew their LUDS plan manually, the quickest and easiest way to do this is by using www.merseyflow.co.uk. Alternatively,
for customers can call the customer service team on 01928 878 878 or use the merseyflow Walk-In Centre, in Howard Court, Runcorn, WA7 1SJ, which are available for those without internet access to use.
Any customers who don’t renew each year will lose their discount pass and would then receive a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for any unpaid crossings.
Anyone whose Local User Discount Scheme plan is due to expire shortly can renew by following merseyflow’s simple six-step guide:
Step 1 – scan or take photographs of your valid driving licence, current council tax bill and V5C vehicle registration certificate ready to upload
Step 2 – log into your merseyflow account at www.merseyflow.co.uk and click ‘renew my plan’
Step 3 – upload your documents
Step 4 – pay your £10 annual fee
Step 5 - If you don’t want the hassle of sending us your documents each year to renew your plan, simply select ‘Auto-renew my LUDS plan’ and set up Direct Debit as your preferred payment method. Your plan will automatically renew each year providing you are eligible.
Step 6 – you will receive an email confirming your payment has been received. Merseyflow will then be in touch to confirm the documents are valid and have been accepted, or to inform that there is an issue with one or more of the documents and to direct you to the next steps.
All renewals will take effect from the expiry date of the existing pass, so noone will lose out by renewing early.
Neil Conway, Chief Executive of merseyflow, said: “We’re reminding all
Halton residents to check the renewal dates of their plans and to take action if they are due to expire. The uptake for our new autorenewal process has been fantastic so far and this really is the best option to make the renewal process much easier and save time each year.”
Halton residents must renew their plan every 12 months to ensure their details are correct and they continue to qualify for the Local User Discount Scheme.