got a parking ticket outside my house, is it worth appealing against it?

stolt

I Got a parking ticket this morning, the road which we currently rent our hose on has parking restrictions from 11am to 3pm because it is close to the train station, nothing wrong with that without it being in place i'm sure the road would be a nightmare. However i bought a fridge today and delivered it home, finally got in it in the house myself and when i went out to move the car there was a traffic attendent there, said what i was doing to him and that i was moving it as i live in the road i know the rules but surely there has to be some allowances for residents if i'm moving things in and out of the house. He just looked at me and said abruptly, ''your parked illegally, got a problem you can appeal against it''... i said i have been a few minutes and he said ''sir you have been 7 minutes'', now that isn't true. I didnt get to my house until a few mintues past eleven, so when he says he had been observing my car for 7 minutes must have been when he was walking up the road and he probably saw me struggling to get the fridge out the boot of the car. There is no way he was standing next to my car for 7 minutes, now the ticket shows 11.01hrs to 11.08hrs. I can ill afford the £35 fine (if i pay within 14 days otherwise its £70) but if i appeal and they dont agree and its over the 14 day period then i might end up paying the full £70.00.

I tried to go online today and appeal, i put my vehicle reg and penalty notice number in and i get this message ''
PCN Details
The following message gives details of errors with the information you have typed. Please correct your input as indicated. The Penalty Charge Notice could not be found.
Please check that you have not mistyped.

so not sure what to do, I better state that the car couldn't go in the driveway because i already had another car in the drive. oh and i took some pictures of the attendent with my camera, just in case he said he never spoke to me so i have pictures dated and timed next to my car and als on the other side of the road, not they will probably be worth anything.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

https://www.pepipoo.com forums.

Most authorities are incompetent when it comes to interpreting the law correctly.

ceebeeby

Difficult, because you admit you were parked when you knew you shouldn't have been. Was there a reason you couldn't bring the fridge / freezer back at a time when you could have parked legitimately.

Dunno that you've got much of an argument imho. Sorry.

stolt

thanks, yeah i kinda thought that was the case, at the end of the day he obviosuly see me and when we moved in we had removal vans and cars up the road and the attendent said you shouldnt but i can see what you are upto. whereas this guy was so matter of fact, i guess he probably gets abuse everyday but, shouldn't he have a open mind everytime he meets a new person, i didn't have my mind made up about him when i spoke to him. I did here that on singles you get 20 mins to unload, i have tried to google it but with all the time taken, i think i'll just pay it and try to forget about it. lifes to short!

anewman

stolt wrote: »

I did here that on singles you get 20 mins to unload

Only if the signs posted state this.

stolt

actually just been to the highway code website and it seems i may have a case ''
Along the edge of the carriageway
Waiting restrictions
Waiting restrictions indicated by yellow lines apply to the carriageway, pavement and verge. You
may stop to load or unload (unless there are also loading restrictions as described below) or while
passengers board or alight. Double yellow lines mean no waiting at any time, unless there are signs
that specifically indicate seasonal restrictions. The times at which the restrictions apply for other road
markings are shown on nearby plates or on entry signs to controlled parking zones. If no days are
shown on the signs, the restrictions are in force every day including Sundays and Bank Holidays.
White bay markings and upright signs (see below) indicate where parking is allowed.''


there are no vertical yellow lines on the kerb to state that no unloading is allowed. So maybe worth a shot at stating what i was doing and at the end of the day the ticket shows its was 7 mins from when he see the car.

also found this little snippet on another website....

Loading
Where there is a single yellow line, loading restrictions are indicated by signs and yellow stripes or "blips" on the kerb or side of the road. Double blips mean no loading is permitted at any time and single blips can mean loading is forbidden at certain times, which can be anything between one and 23 hours (this should be spelt out by signposts). If signs or blips do not forbid it, vehicles can load or unload for 20 minutes on single yellows without incurring a ticket. It does not have to be a commercial vehicle.

AdrianHi

I think you should write and appeal using the info. from the highway code web site you have found.
If your appeal is rejected your 14 days for the lower fine re-starts from the date the appeal is rejected - at least that is what happened in 1996 when I appealed against a ticket and failed.

stolt

AdrianHi wrote: »

I think you should write and appeal using the info. from the highway code web site you have found.
If your appeal is rejected your 14 days for the lower fine re-starts from the date the appeal is rejected - at least that is what happened in 1996 when I appealed against a ticket and failed.

hi yeah ive appealed it this morning, stated my case so i will have to wait and see, they have stated they once they have reached a decision they will restart the 14days 50% off period again, so thats something.

BobToo

There will be signs on the road stating what the restrictions are. If it doesn't say "No loading" at the time in question the ticket is invalid.

Igol

You'll probably get a letter back telling you that the Highway code is a guide and not law but they'll generously offer you another 14 days from the date of that letter to pay it. Pew pew is right, pepipoo. Post a pic of both sides of the ticket (with your bits blanked out) and use the advice when you have to take it to PATAS.

hewhoisnotintheknow

techincally your probably in the wrong, but you cant go through life by following the text book, i would include a copy of the bill for your fridge in the appeal, this will prove that you were just loading, probably