Bailiff letter following bus lane contravention - letters to previous property

alokanvekar

Hi All,

I found out about a bus lane contravention that took place in Jan 2024 in Reading. Having observed the footage on the Council's website, I agree with the contravention and the £115 fine. However as my V5C was not updated to my new address, the PCN letter went to the previous address where I moved from in Dec 2021. I completely agree not changing the V5C address was my mistake.

Now, due to the PCN not being responded to the case was escalated and bailiffs are now involved. I found out by a chance meeting with the new residents earlier this month and I got the chance to collect old post. The current fee from the bailiff is £425 (Initial PCN £115 + £75 + £235)

On the advise from members of another forum, I responded to the Council on 10th Nov to stop enforcement as the PCN and Warrant were directed to the old address under Rule 6 (pre-action and Conduct protocol). Copy of my letter to the Council is shared below

Today, I received a letter from the Council to my response (also shared below) asking me to contact the Bailiffs and settle the debt. They have made no reference to the incorrect Warrant and my request to settle the initial PCN.

I would greatly appreciate if someone can advise what the best course of action for me would be?


MY LETTER TO COUNCIL - 10TH NOV 2024

I am writing concerning the above stated PCN sent to an outdated address I used to reside in, due to an incorrect V5C document.

This letter is to provide further context. The original contravention took place on 7th Jan 2024 and then the council issued PCN which was not responded to, with the council engaging bailiffs to enforce a warrant of control against me. As you are aware, you did not receive any communications from me regarding this PCN because at the time it was issued, I was not resident at the property you sent the notice to, which is xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. In fact, I moved out on Dec 2021. Consequently, none of the notices, including the Order for Recovery, was served. Its only when Bailiff's Notice of intent to take goods letter was forwarded to me last week by current residents that I am now contacting you.

 I accept that the notices were sent to previous address due to the council being advised by DVLA and I apologise for not keeping these details current. Nonetheless, none of your notices was received and I shall be taking up this matter with the Traffic Enforcement Centre. As a consequence of you not being aware of my correct address, the bailiffs have similarly not served any of their statutory notices to the correct address.

While I accept that the council are bound to use DVLA data unless notified to the contrary, the same does not apply to your bailiffs who has already attended the wrong property despite them not receiving any response to their wrongly addressed NoE. Had they undertaken their duties in a diligent manner they would have discovered my present address with ease. I also suspect that they have not made you aware of this issue, which means that the warrant remains defective.

They are seeking to charge me £75 Compliance Fee and £235 Enforcement Fee on the basis of these failings. To reiterate, I am prepared to bring enforcement of the warrant to a conclusion by paying the original fee of £115 on receipt of a NoE addressed to the correct address shared here below my signature. I would have done so in the first instance should the original PCN be sent to my new address.

Under Rule 6 of the Pre-Action Conduct and Protocol I request the Council to cease enforcement, as the warrant is defective for listing my previous address. If I do not receive written confirmation of the cessation of enforcement under the present warrant of control, I will apply to the court for relief from sanctions in accordance with Paragraph 66 of Schedule 12 of the Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and will also seek recovery of my legal expenses on an indemnity basis.

Moreover, the bailiffs are not entitled to recover any fees or charges due to the defective warrant, as outlined in Regulation 3 of The Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014. Barton v. Wright Hassall LLP [2018] UKSC 12 confirms that any defect in the warrant renders associated enforcement fees irrecoverable. This also constitutes a breach of the Taking Control of Goods: National Standards 2014 (Paragraphs 8, 12, and 16), which mandates fair and compliant enforcement.

Please confirm in writing by 15 November 2024 that all enforcement action has been halted. Please also ensure that all future correspondence is directed to my current address as stated.

 

COUNCIL'S RESPONSE TODAY

I refer to your recent communication regarding the above PCN
The contravention of being in a Bus lane occurred on....... at .....pm to a Vauxhall reg......

I have investigated the history of the case and I am satisfied that the Council has processed it correctly and in accordance with the regulation 'THE CIVIL ENFORCEMENT OF ROAD TRAFFIC CONTRAVENTION (APPROVED DEVICES, CHARGING GUIDELINES AND GENERAL PROVISIONS) (ENGLAND) Regulations 2022.

It is too late to appeal against the PCN, as a warrant has been issued to the Enforcement Agents (bailiffs) to collect the debt.

In the circumstances I am unable to consider it further and would suggest that you contact the Bailiffs who are dealing with this matter and settle the outstanding debt.

born_again

As it's a council fine, this site does not cover this. 

Sadly as you did not update your details, then they have taken the only route open to them.

fb1969

You could try posting on here

https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/?PHPSESSID=o99jo4cs7n4ed2mi6798432ln7

Le_Kirk

Since we concentrate on PARKING issues and, even then, private parking companies, you need to go to: -

Since we concentrate on parking charge notices from unregulated private parking companies, you would be better off taking this over to our friends on https://ftla.uk  (the recently started forum to replace/supplement Pepipoo),  as they are the experts on council and police issues.

You will need register before reading the FAQs, then posting both sides of your PCN with your query.

Private

https://www.ftla.uk/private-parking-tickets/

Council

https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/

Police

https://www.ftla.uk/speeding-and-other-criminal-offences/