Newham London PCN - Is it worth appealing?

Fleritta

Hello,

Could you, please, advise me whether I have a chance to appeal this successfully?

I have got a PCN today for overstaying 11 mins over the time stated on the prepaid ticket. I am not familiar with the area, was sent there to have BCG vaccination done for my LO. Machine didn't accept cards only coins. £2 per hour. I put £2.5 (the only cash I had) and strangely still got a ticket only for 1 hour.

As you can expect I cam back 1 hour and 13 mins later and found the PCN on my windscreen.

Can I try to challenge it?

Redx

if this is a council pcn you need to register on pepipoo forums (dont use a hotmail address) and post details on there , including scans of both sides of the pcn

Half_way

Yes its always worth appealing, if you can gather evidence such as photos of signs etc as well as all the above info

Coupon-mad

Fleritta wrote: »

Hello,

Could you, please, advise me whether I have a chance to appeal this successfully?

I have got a PCN today for overstaying 11 mins over the time stated on the prepaid ticket. I am not familiar with the area, was sent there to have BCG vaccination done for my LO. Machine didn't accept cards only coins. £2 per hour. I put £2.5 (the only cash I had) and strangely still got a ticket only for 1 hour.

As you can expect I came back 1 hour and 13 mins later and found the PCN on my windscreen.

Can I try to challenge it?

Yes, always appeal a Council PCN. DO NOT say you came back 13 minutes late, the Council do NOT have that information do they so don't give it! They have it timed at 11 minutes, so that's what you are appealing about.

You can appeal, alleging that 11 minutes is a case of 'de minimis' (a mere trifle that the law should not concern itself with) since Councils are required to allow at least ten minutes past paid-for time.

One minute more than the government MINIMUM ten minute grace period policy, is tiny and does not take account of:

- whether the CEO synchronised his watch against the P&D machines (checking they were all showing the same time that day, before commencing enforcement based on time). Require proof of this strict timing check, from the CEO's notebook and photo of the machines that day, if the PCN is not cancelled,

and

- mitigating circumstances of a driver who is not familiar with the area, having been sent there to have a BCG vaccination done for a child and the family returned almost as soon as that PCN was issued,

and

- the principle of 'de miminis', since Councils are required to allow at least ten minutes, this does not give them carte blanche to hide and swoop on card within sixty seconds of that. Not proportionate.

Finish by asking nicely for it to be cancelled under the circs. If this is your first PCN, say so.

See what pepipoo say first though, they might suggest more. Newham are PCN-happy, far to quick to swoop with a ticket.




WARNING -

this advice is for a Council ticket. 'MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES' ARE NOT SUITABLE FOR PRIVATE PARKING TICKETS.