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[MSE Lawrence]

This is the discussion to link on the back of Martin's blog. Please read the blog first, as this discussion follows it.

Read Martin's 'My first reclaim: Unfair Parking Ticket' Blog.

Click reply to discuss below.

[Dumbledore55]

Go Martin! Jobsworths!!

[Behemoth]

Parking regs are usually enforced by dubious private businesses with profits to make and their employees with 'sales' targets to meet. It is only to be expected that the ethics of the spiv will prevail, just as with any 'back-street' (quite literally in this case) Arthur Daley outfit.

[Errata]

Why is the signage unclear? It may be confusing but the signage itself is perfectly clear as your photo shows.

[Crabman]

Originally Posted by Errata

Why is the signage unclear? It may be confusing but the signage itself is perfectly clear as your photo shows.

The times stated on the sign pictured in the blog are different to those stated on other signs at the end of the road, hence being unclear.

[Errata]

The signage - the signs themselves and the information on them - is completely legible and consequently is not unclear. The signs give contradictory information which is confusing, a different thing to not being clear.

[blanik]

Ok to be pedantic - The signs are neither unclear or confusing.

The boundry signs define the restrictions within the zone (CPZ) which finish at 8pm "unless otherwise signed" - in this case the local restriction is clearly signed to finish at 6.30pm. There is no confusion! Where Martin was parked was legal and the ticket was incorrectly issued.

One other thing to watch if you want to appeal against tickets issued in a CPZ is that the boundry signs must be correctly displayed. i.e. in general one on each side of every road on the entry to the zone ( with some exceptions ). So if you get a ticket in a CPZ check all the entry signs to the zone from ALL directions to make sure they are all OK.

[Hippocampus]

Sounds like the nonsense that goes on in our town with bus lane signs. One sign says you can't use them at peak periods, but other signs say they are not to be used at all.

Total bollix. Deliberately designed to confuse to maximise revenue IMVHO.

[jerrymail]

or controled parking zone Got caught in a so called disabled bay not clearly marked, signes in all the wrong places and only one sign on the entrance to the zone coming off two way road should be one on each side in short won the day but still got told off by magistrate for defending myself like I should'nt. I say if your sure then fight all the way if nothing else you'll get your say and where there's a will there's a ! relation

[ox5]

go martin go!

[jamtart6]

I bet the council people will go "hmm i wonder if thats THE Martin Lewis"...picked on the wrong person didn't they!!

[robpw2]

go martin can you help us with ours , they have put a ticket on my partners car outside our home becuase apparently the road is no parking 8-6 everyday but there is no sign on the road, now i have pointed this out and they have sent a picture of a hedge with a sign being covered however this is at least a mile up the road and if you come from the other end of the road you would not notice this sign , do we still have to pay ...

[IcklePickle]

Do you think they forgot to remove the old sign? Hope they cancel your ticket, that's absurd.

Feel sorry for people who aren't savvy about this and will pay such a large fine

[kimrawlinson]

I have recently challenged Liverpool City Council following the issuing of a parking ticket when I was parked on private land. At first they refused to back down and I figured that they hoped I would crumble and pay the half price fine which they continued to offer. No chance but I had to take it all the way to the parking appeals tribunal service. My case remained consistent but they did not back down until required to present their case at appeal.
I was glad to be proved right but annoyed by my precious time wasted on this matter which could have been resolved sooner.
Parking fines are a nice little earner for Councils and perhaps it is this that influences their actions!!!

[Moonchild]

Originally Posted by Errata

Why is the signage unclear? It may be confusing but the signage itself is perfectly clear as your photo shows.

Some of you may be raising your eyes at this, but this is the type of thought process you normally need when challenging a parking ticket.

You need to be pedantic, you need to be clear, and often enough you are challenging technicalities which can come down to phrasing.

I recently had a parking ticket appeal go through (still waiting for outcome, but am confident) after I was given a £120 ticket for scratching the wrong dates on a visitors parking permit (i.e. i'd scratched Wednesday 20th October instead of Wednesday 21st October - or similar before you check the dates!).

However, the parking officer had given me the ticket for 'Not clearly displaying parking permit' instead of a different offence 'Not displaying correct parking permit'. (an incorrect parking permit had been clearly displayed, as it showed on their own photos!).

As a result the PCN will be cancelled as they cannot reterospectively change the offence.

So, be pedantic, look at the way things are phrased, take photo's and speak to people who know what they are on about. I got fabulous help from another forum that we're not allowed to name, but I hope MSE's Appeals Forums has as much success in 2009!

[Prune77]

This is giving me hope!! Last November I parked on a single yellow line in Nottingham City centre; there are always cars parked on this line in the evening but this was in the afternoon. I searched up and down the street for restriction times but there was absolutely nothing. Not only did I receive a parking ticket but I was towed away 25 minutes after I parked - a total of £140.00 to get my car back! I have appealed on the grounds of there being no indication of restrictions (I have since learned that there is signage three streets away indicating a tow-away zone) and also on the grounds of the council ignoring the governments guidelines stating that towing away should be reserved for repeated offenders and not as a way of gaining revenue. I rang just before Christmas to check that they had received the appeal as I had not heard anything and there is a backlog of at least a month - that will be longer now due to Christmas and New Year, no doubt - so all I can do it wait and hope!

[janiebquick]

A few years ago (when the police were responsible for parking control where we live), my husband was given a parking ticket for parking in a disabled bay at 7 30 in the morning. Only, the adjacent sign clearly stated that restrictions only applied from 8 30 in the morning. He complained to the local police and was gobsmacked when the officer who issued the ticket telephoned to apologise!!

[TimeLord86]

This is really useful stuff to know!

I have heard (not sure to the validity of this) that parking officers will issue tickets, knowing full well that the ticket they write is not valid for the times, or areas. They do this under a pretense of fear, in that people will pay the fine, because they are too nervous to challenge / unsure of the existing parking restrictions, and don't want a CCJ or black mark against their criminal record. It's all to do with quota's, and if parking officers don't meet their quota of giving out tickets, whether valid or not, for that week / month, then it will not reflect wisely in their employers eyes.

I say challenge everything!

[billbennett]

FAO Martin:

What I'd like to know is, as you were "observed" at 6.33pm, did you ACTUALLY park between 6.30pm and 6.32pm, or did you sneakily get there a couple of minutes early, and just not get caught?