Hi all

Very curious about how long a PCN can actually be live/valid for and if there's a certain cut off period where the regarding council have no right to ask for any payment anymore.

I have been disputing a PCN back and forth since last July 2016 and once again have had it brought back down to £65 at "the discretion" of said council employee.

Do I really need to pay this?

Can they keep pursuing me leading to court/bailiff action?

If I have to pay the £65 within 2 weeks I will but if I do not really need to of course I would like a way out of it.

Any info/clarification would be appreciated

Thanks

If they decide to take it to Court that is when the costs start to escalate & eventually it could go to enforcement so a figure of £500 is possible.

But can they? Its been a year and a couple NtOs later?

Yes they can. A debt owing is actionable for 6 years.

The short answer is yes they can, but without details of the contravention and all documentation between you and the council it's impossible to comment further

Yes but I've already gone through all of these stages with them over the past year and just now had the Order for recovery reduced back to an NtO again which I then appealed asking for a further discount which I've been given for the 2nd time in the year.

Just seems like they themselves have gotten lost with my PCN and forgot whats actually happened

Here is the latest letter from them if it helps at all understanding the scenario in addition to the above

Regards

camden letter.pdf

Is this right?

You have made reps to a 2nd NtO, which they have rejected but at the same time re-offered the discount?

Iff s, you have the choice of either paying the discount or appealing to adjudication and risking the full penalty

Yes, Even though its a year + later do they still have the right to request payment?

Is there not a cut off date for when the PCN ceases to be live?

Here is the latest letter from them if it helps at all understanding the scenario in addition to the above

 

https://imgur.com/a/p63iB

 

Regards

It seems from the letter that you wanted to pay the discounted amount, which they have agreed to, even though they are under no obligation to do that.

Further they have also said that you can appeal to adjudication, but I assume that you wouldn't have offered to pay the discount if you had a good chance of the adjudicator allowing your appeal.

Without knowing the whys and wherefore of the original contravention, I'd pay the discount

Yes, Even though its a year + later do they still have the right to request payment?

 

Is there not a cut off date for when the PCN ceases to be live?

Not really, just because you have managed to spin it out for 15 months doesn't make enforcement invalid

I don't know how the adjudication process works and have no Idea if my appeal would be worthy enough.

I received the initial PCN because I pulled up in a residential bay to take a break from driving as I had been driving a while and my car battery died on me due to my old ish car,

Left it to find someone in the nearby shops with leads or anyone to help really

when I came back had been issued a ticket.

I explained my car battery's faulty nature to them over the past year within the disputes and even offered to show them the numerous times breakdown cover had to come and assist me. They disregarded this as my own ignorance.

To be honest I'm not sure why I've been offered a discounted price once again as they reduced it from an NtO a while ago as well to £65 and said they would not do it again...

that is the scenario

Not really, just because you have managed to spin it out for 15 months doesn't make enforcement invalid

Alrighty, Fair enough, I read somewhere its only enforceable for 6 months or so.

There is this exemption: A vehicle is prevented from moving by circumstances beyond the driver’s control, which could apply if a vehicle has broken down.

However, by your own admission, this had happened on 'numerous' occaisons, ie it was not a one off and something that you knew about but failed to fix, which is almost certainly why they rejected your reps.

It's unlikely to win at adjudication. My advice is still to pay the discount

What if I told them it was a one off, Would there be any possibility of getting out of this?

moved to the local authority PCN forum

What if I told them it was a one off, Would there be any possibility of getting out of this?

a) that would be a lie which at adjudication, is liable to a fine of up to £5000

b) you said that you have already told them, presumably in writing, that you offered to show them the numerous times Breakdown Cover had to come and assist me.

Yes It would be

I have but it seems like they're not on top of their admin work, That or they are genuinely being understanding and trying to help me...

Nevermind I got my answer earlier. Thank you all for the help.

Stop wriggling, pay the reduced Penalty whilst still available. Most motorists would rip their hand off if made the same offer unless they knew Adjudicator would recommend cancellation, which Council could ignore if they wish.

No wriggling here Just weighing up options considering I've done this much curious If I could completely right it off as every penny counts especially when it was out of your control initially.

Any way I could find out if an adjudicator would recommend cancellation? and you said the council can ignore it... Whats the point in an adjudicators decision?

Regards

To answer your original question, I believe the PCN is enforceable for seven years.

The council will not ignore the adjudicator. There'd be no point in having it, if either party could ignore the ruling. The council will do whatever the adjudicator directs.

Your letter above states that the council has not accepted a formal representation yet, so you are not in a position to appeal to the adjudictor. You would need to first let the new discount offer expire, then make a formal representation, then have it rejected - and then you can apply to the adjudicator.

I will say that the letter shows you already agreed to pay the discount after making failed reps before. If you now take this all the way, it will not reflect well on you, and the adjudicator may well decide that you are acting vexatiously. At the end of the day, it's taxpayers' money you are using up on this process, and it's costing 'us' (not me personally) more than the PCN itself. He shouldn't let that sway his decision of course, but it just doesn't make it look like a particularly genuine case.

As to the outcome, I would say it's the toss of a coin.

Alright, Yea I'll just pay it off at the end of the month and count myself fortunate, Been tossing the coin for about a year now.

Thanks everyone for the help, Much appreciated.

Alright, Yea I'll just pay it off at the end of the month .

The discounted amount has to be paid by 20th Nov. Don't miss the deadline or it will cost you an additional £65

Yea that's what I meant by end of the month, Thanks.

no there isnt because they served the NTO in time. You dragging it out for a century wont make it go away as all it does is keep it "live" as you put it so even the Limitations Act wont com into play.

Yes, Even though its a year + later do they still have the right to request payment?

 

Is there not a cut off date for when the PCN ceases to be live?