Car Tax Disc Not Displayed = Fine!

newbie83_2

We have just recieved a £60 fine for not displaying our car tax disc.

Our car tax is paid in full and we had displayed it in the car (at the bottom of the windscreen on the passengers side) but it must have become unattached whilst we were parked and we found it on the passenger seat.

I was wondering if we could refute the fine or we just have to pay up?!?

Quentin

I don't think you can deny the offence (there was no disc on display, and that is the offence the ticket has been issued for).

But it's not the sort of thing that endears law abiding people to the police!

It's got to be worth sending an explanaton of how the offence came about, apologising and seeing if you can melt someone's heart!

logana

Hi - if it was sitting on the passenger seat probably the heat caused it to drop off.

Write to whatever address is on the "opportunity to pay" letter and explain the circumstances.

Happened to me years ago - tax disc fell off windscreen and I wrote explaining what had happened. Weeks went by and then got a letter saying that they would not be pursuing (sp?).

You have nothing to lose and they will know from their records that the vehicle was taxed at the time.

Good luck.

Conor_3

How does that help? There was still no tax disc shown at the time. The DVLA database shows it's taxed which is why it wasn't clamped and towed. You can bet they have a picture showing no tax disc.

logana has the right idea - there are human beings in the judiciary still.

Chall

My advice would be to write to them and explain the circumstances as said above, there was a case a few years back where this happened and the guy was taken to court, even though he was technically guilty of not displaying a tax disc no fine or other penalty was issued by the courts

lolly333

On Saturday I found a FPN on my car for not displaying the tax disc. It took me a while to read it as it was completly waterlogged due to the rain. My car is ancient and the windows INSIDE get wet/icy. I can only assume that the wet windscreen caused the sticky pads on my holder to fall off. I hadn't been in the car for about a week due to illness. When I got in the car, the holder was on the passanger seat, so it must have fallen off.

I then bumped into 2 officers (one of whom said it was a parking ticket & the other said he didn't think the police could issue parking tickets!-nice to know that they know the law inside out eh?). They just said to write in and I should be treated sympathetically.

I then phoned the police as I needed to get the address to write to (as the ticket had disintegrated by this point). The policeman I spoke to didn't understand the ticket and went to check something. When he came back, he said that he didn't know it was an offence not to display it!

I'm writing in tomorrow to hope that they will let it go. I'd love to know how anyone else has got on? I'm so annoyed, as a basic check would tell them that I do have the tax. :mad:

The_Banker_5

lolly333 wrote: »

I'm writing in tomorrow to hope that they will let it go. I'd love to know how anyone else has got on? I'm so annoyed, as a basic check would tell them that I do have the tax. :mad:

Of course its an offence not do display your tax.

maninthestreet

lolly333 wrote: »

On Saturday I found a FPN on my car for not displaying the tax disc. It took me a while to read it as it was completly waterlogged due to the rain. My car is ancient and the windows INSIDE get wet/icy. I can only assume that the wet windscreen caused the sticky pads on my holder to fall off. I hadn't been in the car for about a week due to illness. When I got in the car, the holder was on the passanger seat, so it must have falled.

I then bumped into 2 officers (one of whom said it was a parking ticket & the other said he didn't think the police could issue parking tickets!-nice to know that they know the law inside out eh?). They just said to write in and I should be treated sympathetically.

I then phoned the police as I needed to get the address to write to (as the ticket had disintegrated by this point). The policeman I spoke to didn't understand the ticket and went to check something. When he came back, he said that he didn't know it was an offence not to display it!

I'm writing in tomorrow to hope that they will let it go. I'd love to know how anyone else has got on? I'm so annoyed, as a basic check would tell them that I do have the tax. :mad:

Another example of the police not understanding the laws they are charged with enforcing. Parking offences are no longer handled by the polcie - that's is the responsiblity of the local authorities. Not correctly displaying a tax disk in a vehicle is most certainly an offence.

MrsTinks

In fairness unless they are traffic police then no they don't know the minute details of the various traffic offences... they will know the areas they work in - same as any other human being. However if you ever read any of the stuff with your renewal docs for tax it does clearly state it's an offence to "fail to display a valid road tax certificate" or words to that effect.
It's down to an officers discression (sp?) if they issue a fine when they have checked the system (if they're in a car and can access the system) and see what you infact DO have tax...
Failing to display a tax disk is not a parking offence btw - it's a traffic offence.
I DO think it's worth appealing and explaining that the disk was in the window, it had become dislodged and fallen on the seat out of easy view from the front of the car by easily seen from the side etc. But technically the offence HAS been committed (whether you agree with it or not) as the disk WASN'T displayed...

xocbc

maninthestreet wrote: »

Another example of the police not understanding the laws they are charged with enforcing. Parking offences are no longer handled by the polcie - that's is the responsiblity of the local authorities. Not correctly displaying a tax disk in a vehicle is most certainly an offence.

Parking offences are only the responsibility of local authorities when on-street parking has been decriminalised in that local authority's area. This has not happened in all areas and is a choice for each local authority to make.

hethmar

Had same thing happen years back, wrote to local licensing office explaining circs and they reduced the fine to half I think. Better than nowt.