Civil Enforcement Ltd - POPLA Appeal Help - Invisible Signage at Night

yamalui

Hi all,

I've read the Newbie thread and followed the advice so far. I'm now at POPLA stage with Civil Enforcement and would appreciate any feedback on my draft appeal before submitting.

Background

Operator: Civil Enforcement Limited (BPA member)
Location: Great Western Hotel car park (Southwest England)
Date of incident: 03 October 2025
Time: 18:46-19:12 (dark, evening)
PCN Number: [Redacted]
POPLA Code: [Have code]
Contravention: "Failed to obtain a permit in accordance with the notified terms"
Charge: £100 (reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days)

What Happened

The driver parked at the hotel car park at 6:46 PM (dark) to use toilet facilities as the train station had no accessible toilets. The driver spoke to hotel reception staff. Duration: 25 minutes.

First Appeal

I appealed to CEL using the template from the Newbie thread:

• Challenged signage visibility
• Did NOT name the driver
• Requested evidence of signage, landowner authority, etc.

CEL's Rejection

Received rejection on 13 November 2025 with standard template response stating:

• "No record of vehicle being registered to be exempt"
• "Many clear and visible signs displayed"
• "We maintain a continuous log confirming signage remains in place"
• "Fully compliant with POFA 2012"
• Provided POPLA code

My Main Grounds for POPLA Appeal

1. Catastrophic signage failure - invisible in darkness:

   • Incident at 18:46-19:12 (6:46 PM in early October - completely dark)
   • Signage has ZERO illumination
   • Small, poorly positioned, far from entrance
   • Breaches BPA Code requirement for signs to be "visible, legible and unambiguous"

2. POFA keeper liability concerns:

   • I'm appealing as keeper, not driver
   • Civil Enforcement is mentioned in the guide as having POFA failures
   • They claim compliance but provide no evidence of exact statutory wording

3. No valid contract formation:

   • Invisible signage = no informed consent
   • £100 charge not prominently displayed (Red Hand Rule)
   • Fails Consumer Rights Act transparency requirement

4. Vague allegation:

   • "Failed to obtain a permit" - not explained HOW to obtain permit
   • No evidence of payment machine, or instructions visible in darkness

5. Landowner authority:

   • Request unredacted authority from hotel
   • BPA Code strict proof required

Evidence

I have daytime images (too far to travel back to get any more images) showing:

• Small signage far from entrance
• No prominence even in daylight
• No illumination visible

My argument: If barely visible in DAYLIGHT, impossible to see at 6:46 PM in darkness.

Questions

1. POFA compliance: Looking at my NTK (attached), does it appear POFA compliant? I can see some statutory wording on the back.

2. Draft POPLA appeal: I've prepared a 10+ page detailed appeal (as advised in guide). Is there anything I should definitely include:

   • Beavis case comparison?
   • Vine v Waltham Forest case law?
   • Henry Greenslade quote about keeper liability?
   • Specific POPLA decision references?

3. Timing: I have until 11 December 2025 to submit to POPLA. Any issues with submitting soon?

Draft Appeal Structure

• Executive Summary
• Ground 1: Signage Non-Compliance (BPA Code, Red Hand Rule, darkness, no illumination)
• Ground 2: POFA Keeper Liability Issues
• Ground 3: Operator Hasn't Proven Appellant is Liable Driver
• Ground 4: Landowner Authority / BPA Compliance
• Ground 5: Vague Allegation
• Ground 6: No Valid Contract Formation
• Evidence Attachments (daytime photos showing poor signage)
• Civil Enforcement's Inadequate Rejection Response
• Summary and Conclusion
• Legal References

What I Need

Any feedback on:

• Strength of arguments
• Missing any key points?
• Whether to add case law references (Beavis, Vine, specific POPLA decisions)
• Hotel complaint strategy (Emailed hotel, received standard dismissal claiming "fines are not controlled by us". Worth pushing back or move straight to POPLA?)
• Anything else I should know about Civil Enforcement at POPLA stage?

Thank you in advance for any help! This forum has been invaluable.

---

Note: I have NOT named the driver in any appeal and will not do so.

Coupon-mad

POPLA is a last resort (or it can be swerved completely if you like - usually I do NOT even bother) and the POPLA code lasts a month, so you have ages to exhaust PLAN A first.

What happened when you complained to the hotel? You could try that by phone one evening this week and if the manager is not on board to cancel the PCN, you could ask nicely if they would take some general wide view photos of the car park in the dark, to allow you to use them as evidence. You might also pick up from the staff if CEL are more trouble than they are worth and that the hotel might be peeee'd off.