Welsh Borough Council & CEL plan to use (probably) illegal ANPR: who's going to tell the DVLA?

Coupon-mad

https://www.northwalespioneer.co.uk/news/20509831.porth-eirias-car-parking-scheme-create-better-access/

Anyone on this board local to Conwy County Borough Council?  Fancy breaking it to the Council they can't do this and complaining about CEL (aka Creative Car Parks) to the BPA and DVLA?

Or maybe just dob them in to the newspaper above, I'm sure they will be all over it when they hear that this is unlawful.  ANPR use for parking enforcement of off-street Local Authority car parks was banned as part of the Deregulation  Act 2015.

But look:

Over the next couple of weeks, Creative Car Park will be completing the necessary arrangements to enforce parking rules at the site. This will include erecting signage, installing a payment kiosk and an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) camera. The scheme is expected to be operational from mid-August.

No, it won't. CEL, you know you can't do this.  Councils cannot enforce parking enforcement using contract law or ANPR (the latter is only allowed for on-street traffic offences like bus lanes).

DVLA will stop this if someone fancies reporting it. Ideally someone from Wales.

Remember what happened to High Wycombe Council?  Completely banned by the DVLA for over a year, I seem to recall.  They couldn't get any DVLA data for off street parking offences at all, for ages, despite throwing their toys out of the pram.

So far as off-street parking is concerned, the Secretary of State for Transport wrote to all English local authorities in September 2014 indicating that the Government opinion was that it was unlawful for local authorities to use CCTV/ANPR in public car parks and informed them that DVLA would not supply information in those circumstances.

AFAIK, that remains the Government's position:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2960986/Thousands-rip-parking-fines-dished-town-hall-car-parks-illegally-using-automatic-number-plate-recognition.html

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2019-04-09/HL15141/

http://notomob.co.uk/discussions/index.php?topic=4512.0

https://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/15022494.council-forced-to-ditch-anpr-parking-system-in-favour-of-pay-and-display/

Grizebeck

Email sent using extracts of the above, to the council
What email address should be used for the DVLA please @Coupon-mad ?

Mouse007

I'd wait until they have set it all up, hopefully at vast cost and then complain to the DVLA.

Fruitcake

Mouse007 said:

I'd wait until they have set it all up, hopefully at vast cost and then complain to the DVLA.

I disagree. It's easier for people never to have been hit by parking charges than to deal with them post event.
Some people will pay, and may never get their money back. 
Some may pay but spend an inordinate amount of time trying to rectify their loss.
Local taxpayers will fund the scam, and then fund the council getting themselves out of the midden.

It is better to stop it from ever happening in my opinion.

Fruitcake

Prohibition of ANPR scamera use by councils explained.


Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 para 87 as amended by the Deregulation Act 2015 section 53 (*addition of para 87a *) allows for certain types of equipment to be prohibited.

* (1)The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision to prohibit the use by civil enforcement officers of a device of a description specified in the regulations, or of records produced by such a device, in connection with the enforcement of parking contraventions on a road in a civil enforcement area in England.*

According to,

The Secretary of State's Statutory Guidance to Local Authorities on the Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions, published in 2006

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/873752/statutory-guidance-local-authorities-enforcement-parking-contraventions-document.pdf

1.1 This Statutory Guidance is published by the Secretary of State for Transport under section 87 of the Transport Management Act 2004.

...

Enforcement using Approved Devices 
8.9

"Penalty charge notices must not be served by post on the basis of evidence from an approved device other than when vehicles are parked on:

a bus lane;
a bus stop clearway or bus stand clearway;
a Keep Clear zig-zag area outside a school; or
a red route."


In other words, a device has to be approved by the Secretary of State. Even if  ANPR is an approved device, it can only be used in the circumstances given above. Conversely it cannot therefore be used anywhere else for any other reason, including on street and off street parking.

There were plans to add use of ANPR cameras for the monitoring of dedicated cycle lanes, but I don't know if that was ever enacted.

daveyjp

A search on their planning portal also produces no results against the postcode for an application for the ANPR, kiosk or advertising consent for the signage.

No way that can be operating legally by August.

GeorgeFormby

Does this make a difference?

From the BPA, admittedly.

http://www.britishparking.co.uk/write/Local_authority_use_of_fixed_ANPR_cameras_in_off-street_car_parks.pdf

daveyjp

They can use approved devices (also defined under a separate act) to enforce penalties for road traffic contraventions under their Civil Enforcement Act.

This does not include sub contracting management to issue parking invoices using ANPR and is probably ultra vires, which is what got High Wycombe into hot water.

It appears the Council have all the powers they need to DIY, but are choosing not to.

Grizebeck

Always no keeper liability at this site

Fruitcake

Every version of the Traffic Management Act from 2004 when it was first introduced until the present day covers England and Wales, and includes this statement,

Part 6 Civil enforcement of traffic contraventions

Civil penalties for road traffic contraventions

72 Civil penalties for road traffic contraventions

(4) The regulations may include provision prohibiting the imposition of a penalty charge except on the basis of—

(a) a record produced by an approved device, or

(b) information given by a civil enforcement officer as to conduct observed by him.

Castle

And from the

The Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (General Provisions) (Wales) Regulations 2008:-

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2008/614/contents/made

Evidence of contravention
5.  A penalty charge must not be imposed except on the basis of—
(a)a record produced by an approved device; or
(b)information given by a civil enforcement officer as to conduct observed by that officer.