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What's the legal difference? Please help

In very basic terms, can someone tell me the legal differences between a Penalty Charge Notice and a Civil Penalty Notice?

As far as I understand a PCN is issued by either a council or Police and one would be legally obliged to inform them as to who the driver of the vehicle was.

Whilst a CPN is issued by a private parking company, who have no legal right to force you to disclose the name of the driver. And I gather they sometimes will call these Parking Charge Notices in order to confuse and fool us into thinking they are 'official' PCNs.

Are there any other major legal differences? Or have I got this wrong!! :confused:

Comments

  • peter_the_piper
    peter_the_piper Posts: 30,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    That just about sums it up. With 1) PCN you check to see if the contravention is correct, all signs and lines are correct and that the pcn was issued correctly etc. With 2) you just ignore, DONT contact and don't worry. By not contacting them you end up with less scrap paper but it does mean they use less money chasing a lost cause.
    I'd rather be an Optimist and be proved wrong than a Pessimist and be proved right.
  • bargepole
    bargepole Posts: 3,238 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    johidd wrote: »
    As far as I understand a PCN is issued by either a council or Police and one would be legally obliged to inform them as to who the driver of the vehicle was.
    Not quite true, an official PCN means that the Registered Keeper is legally responsible for paying the penalty charge, they don't really care who was driving.

    A fake ticket from a PPC can only be enforced on the basis of a presumed contract between the landowner and the driver, and the RK has no obligation to disclose the driver's identity, despite all the misleading nonsense that some PPCs put in their letters.

    I have been providing assistance, including Lay Representation at Court hearings (current score: won 57, lost 14), to defendants in parking cases for over 5 years. I have an LLB (Hons) degree, and have a Graduate Diploma in Civil Litigation from CILEx. However, any advice given on these forums by me is NOT formal legal advice, and I accept no liability for its accuracy.
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