Drove through Heathrow 'drop off' - shall the registered owner expect a PCN?

MrCyberSecurity

So - last Friday 18th March, the driver of my car was making their way to the Long Stay 5 carpark at Heathrow. At the crucial roundabout, they missed the sign to go left for the Long Stay car parks, and instead ended up going right into the 'drop off' area.

They realised their mistake and didn't stop in the drop off area - they just drove through it, back down again, back to the roundabout and carried on to the Long Stay car park. They returned home from their trip yesterday 27th March - over a week later - expecting to see some sort of PCN from APCOA, but nothing yet.

Does anyone know: are their cameras intelligent enough to only target cars that actually park up in the bays? Or will they catch any car that enters that zone, even if it doesn't park and just drives through?

If I do get a PCN as the registered owner, I plan on appealing using the text I've seen people refer to in these threads (blue text in newbies post, etc.)

Coupon-mad

You will be OK if in that bit less than 5 mins I expect.  Either way, easy to beat at POPLA as they are nonPOFA.

MrCyberSecurity

OK - sounds good. Thanks for the reply. They were in the drop off zone for the length of time it took to drive in and out the other end - so maybe 30 - 40 seconds I guess. 

I'll update this thread if I do (or don't) get a PCN just for others who may get into this situation in the future.

fisherjim

The fee is charged just for entering the zone it makes no difference whether you stop or not once passed the ANPR they have you.

LHR have stated this:

There is a £5 charge for vehicles entering the drop-off areas. You can pay in advance, on the day you drop-off, or by midnight the next day. You cannot pay at an airport ticket machine or in the terminal drop-off zones.

https://www.heathrow.com/transport-and-directions/terminal-drop-off-charge

https://www.heathrow.com/terms-and-conditions/terminal-drop-off-charge-terms-and-conditions

MrCyberSecurity

fisherjim said:

The fee is charged just for entering the zone it makes no difference whether you stop or not once passed the ANPR they have you.

Bummer! I'll keep the thread updated as to what happens...

The_Slithy_Tove

MrCyberSecurity said:

Bummer! I'll keep the thread updated as to what happens...

The good news, however, is there can be no keeper liability for a couple of reasons:

• Not Relevant Land as far a POFA is concerned
• The car was never parked, so POFA is irrelevant anyway

So when the Keeper gets a notice demanding money, they can reply telling them to pursue the driver, who you have no obligation to name. You should also edit your initial post to refer only to "the Driver". If it's a company/hire/lease car, it'll be different, as the registered keeper will get the notice.

fisherjim

The_Slithy_Tove said:

MrCyberSecurity said:

Bummer! I'll keep the thread updated as to what happens...

The good news, however, is there can be no keeper liability for a couple of reasons:

• Not Relevant Land as far a POFA is concerned
• The car was never parked, so POFA is irrelevant anyway

So when the Keeper gets a notice demanding money, they can reply telling them to pursue the driver, who you have no obligation to name. You should also edit your initial post to refer only to "the Driver". If it's a company/hire/lease car, it'll be different, as the registered keeper will get the notice.

Yep, and from LHR own (contradictory) terms and conditions for the drop off zone as below Traffic Orders and byelaws trump some silly PPC made up rules:

6- Parking Charge Notices

6.1 A Parking Charge Notice may be issued to you if you fail to pay the terminal drop-off charge in accordance with these terms and conditions or you do not comply with any other requirement of these terms and conditions. 

6.2 The amount specified on the Parking Charge Notice must be paid within 28 days from the date of issue.  A reduced payment option will be available for an initial period of 14 days.  If you do not pay the reduced amount within this period, then the full amount will become payable. 

6.3 If the Parking Charge Notice is not paid within 28 days from the date of issue, further enforcement action may be taken and you may be liable for additional fees incurred as a result of your non-compliance (including, without limitation, debt recovery costs). 

6.4 When you enter a terminal drop-off zone, your vehicle registration details will be identified by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) for enforcement purposes.  In the event of a breach of these terms and conditions, we (via our trusted third party) may use the vehicle registration details to request and obtain details of the vehicle’s registered keeper from the DVLA.  To find out more details about the personal information we collect, how and why we collect it, what we do with it, how long we keep it and what your rights are, please see our privacy notice at www.heathrow.com/dropoff.   

7- Traffic Orders and Byelaws

7.1 The roads within Heathrow airport, including the terminal drop-off zones, are regulated by traffic orders and byelaws.  Notices specifying such traffic orders and byelaws as may be applicable are displayed at the airport site.   

7.2 Nothing in these terms and conditions replaces or in any way derogates from the provisions of such traffic orders and byelaws as may be in force from time to time.  We reserve the right to take enforcement action against you (including through court proceedings) for breach of such orders or byelaws. 

MrCyberSecurity

The_Slithy_Tove said:

You should also edit your initial post to refer only to "the Driver". If it's a company/hire/lease car, it'll be different, as the registered keeper will get the notice.

Thanks!!!

MrCyberSecurity

fisherjim said:

The_Slithy_Tove said:

MrCyberSecurity said:

Bummer! I'll keep the thread updated as to what happens...

The good news, however, is there can be no keeper liability for a couple of reasons:

• Not Relevant Land as far a POFA is concerned
• The car was never parked, so POFA is irrelevant anyway

So when the Keeper gets a notice demanding money, they can reply telling them to pursue the driver, who you have no obligation to name. You should also edit your initial post to refer only to "the Driver". If it's a company/hire/lease car, it'll be different, as the registered keeper will get the notice.

Yep, and from LHR own (contradictory) terms and conditions for the drop off zone as below Traffic Orders and byelaws trump some silly PPC made up rules

Thanks for the feedback, here. It's really interesting and useful.

Well - day 14. Two weeks to the day, a PCN has been delivered informing the registered keeper of the "contravention" of the car entering the Drop Off Zone. In fact, two identical PCN notices were delivered in separate envelopes.

I plan on appealing using the information provided here. Thanks very much for this, and I'll let you know what happens.

stonechat

Hi Mr Cyber, what happened?  the same happened to the car's driver, same place etc.  I'm now researching on this board to challenge. Happy holidays eh!

Coupon-mad

Just copy the thread by @flybye as these are the easiest to kill off on appeal.