Thunderstorm, I agree with your sentiments. However, In my mind this needs to be taken much further then just shaming the council. I telephoned Which? lawyers yesterday re a PCN issued without a Traffic Management Order. The lawyers advice was to appeal to PATAS in a timely manner. If the PATAS arbitrator decides against the appellant then the next step would be a Judicial Review. That's the 1991 Traffic act side of things covered. However... How do you hold responsible your council enforcement officers and their contractors? Let us remember that one of the core problems of private enforcement for profit is the fact that very efficient plc's are contracted 'lawfully' to sell their products which are 'parking tickets' and the bonus product the 'clamp'. They have nothing else to offer. Must not forget that this system also feeds the Bailiffs. Apparently it is a good business. They are all NOT interested in community issues. You need to contact the Brent Street Scene & Transport department and request the Traffic Management Order for your road. Study this to reassure yourself that you are within your rights. Then contact the Brent Enforcement Team and ask them whether they have instructed their enforcement contractors to enforce that location. Depending on the answer you will have reason to write an official complaint against 1. Illegal enforcement of Bent councils enforcement contractor and 2. possibly a complaint against the Brent Enforcement officer for malfeasence or misconduct in office. It is probably best to get all responses in writing. An official complaint should be made to the council referring the Abuse of Powers Act. If the council then does not deal with this to your satisfaction then the matter needs to referred to the Local Government Ombudsman for a Local Government Review. The next step would then be the High Court which is not free costing thousands of pounds. As this is the process necessary to hold local councils and their officers responsible I think that this should be done. However, apart from the enormous waste of personal time, need for legal knowledge, substantial funds may be required to go all the way. I just hope, that apart of ton's of determination that you also have some very angry, public spirited and well heeled neighbours to see this through with you. Sadly, most individuals just get angry, find a way to get the PCN annulled leaving it at that or pay up and resign themselves to the feeling that nothing can be done. I have the feeling that the powers to be know and rely on this. I have yet to find like minded individuals that are prepared to take this all the way. One of the core problems is that central government allows local councils to delegate their responsibility of enforcement for profit. As we know well by now this Private Public Partnership leads to wholesale abuse of the public. Councils effectively act like a sales force driving business into the arms of the enforcement contractors they have hired. And those plc's are ALL very profitable multinational multimillion pound companies. Yet, parking or the lack of it is a sensitive community issue which needs to be dealt with sensitively by councils for and on behalf of local communities. SO - why do so many of us allow government and local government to trample all over us causing so much upset?

Hi Martin, You should ask the club to waive the ticket. I am sure they can. It's a goodwill issue. Bear in mind that they cannot fine you. They have no authority and they will have a difficulty to enforce this if they can't even get the reg right. So, I would just wait and see if they send you a solicitors letter. But this will probably go to some other unsuspecting motorist who's the got the reg on your ticket.

[quote name= I was issued a pcn a while back and asked for advice on this forum, as the ticket didnt have a date of issue, didnt state colour of vehicle and didnt have a signiture from the traffic attendant. I was advised to appeal and i used used the above letter ( with a few minor changes) to appeal the ticket. Today i recieved a letter from TRETHOWANS solicitors saying that i should pay the £80 within 14 days or court proceedings will be issued against me. Along with a warning that i will have to pay interest, court fees and costs. There is no referance to the letter which i sent them. What do i do now ?[/quote] I had a CHARGE NOTICE in 2003 for overstaying in a supermarket car park. Duly ignored it to be followed by a threatening letter from TRETHOWANS. I then looked up the "Voluntary Code of Practice for Private Car Parking Enforcement" on the DVLA web site. I realised that the self adhesive plastic envelope used to stick the charge notice on my windscreen did contravene the law because it said "WARNING IT IS AN OFFENCE FOR ANY PERSON OTHER THAN THE DRIVER TO REMOVE THIS NOTICE" This is clearly not true as they have no legal powers of enforcement. This is a civil matter. However impersonating a legal authority is an imprisonable offence. I wrote a stern letter to that effect and never heard from them again. I think you need to go back over the original details to pick holes. IMHO the Trethowans solicitors letter is just standard intimidation to bully you into paying up. Even if I were not to find any holes in their case I would be inclined to just ignore them. They might not even bother to take you to court.

"Do I have any chance of winning or I should pay discounted £30" From reading the details cleary this is a difficult case. But as I understand the current system of fine discounting, the amount of the fine will be determined on when you appeal. So, if you start to appeal in the discounted period it will be the discounted amount and the end of the appeal. If you appeal later it will be the full amount. Could more knowlegeable forum member please add clarity by confirming or denying this. It irks me that so many motorists do not appeal for fear that they will have to pay the full amount of the fine. It strikes me that this kind of intimidation works all to well against motorists

Jachu, ready your posting makes me very angry because I realise that I too would fallen foul by this poor signage. I wonder just how many motorists even know what a "match day" is in relation to parking rules. It took me two decades of motoring to come across the term two years ago and I promtly fell foul of it because the signage is not self explanatory. The fine cost me £50.00 because at the time I was not yet angry enough to appeal every ticket. Since 2005/6 I appeal ALL tickets. I, like many morists think that enforcent is now so overzealous that we must oppose the system (it's all abput money). I don't get many tickets because I respect RT rules (most are there for good reason) and so far I have won all appeals The absence of the timed restriction for "match day" if unfair bordering on entrapment. I would fight this ticket on this basis. By going to a personal appeal hearing you might even find out that the adjudicator is well aware of poor signage and they may have made many recommendations for this to be improved - just to be completely ignored by the local council. And believe me, adjudicators are very unhappy because councils ignore recommendations notoriously. To my surprise I have won an appeal against TFL on this basis (driving through what appears to be just a bus stop at then of a bus lane). The adjudicator was fully aware of the lack of signage at the point where I contravened the bus lane rules.

You have to be either careless or pretty desperate to park in a taxi pay. I think you wil find it quite difficult to get off this one.

Hi Cybora It is NOT an offence! Just as them in your letter which law they are referring to. Unless this private enforcement operator is contracted by the local council to enforce parking restrictions on behalf of the council they are well out of order for assuming legal powers they do not have. Here is the relevant extract from the DVLA Voluntary Code of Practice for Private Car Parking Enforcement: "3.3. Company titles, documentation and notices issued in respect of parking violations should not create the impression that action is being taken on behalf of a public body." My gut feeling is that they will not be able to enforce this penalty charge. I would fight this one on principle. Also, do remember that this is a civil case. I.e. before they can force you to pay up they must present this to a court of law such the small claims court where you will have a chance to defend your self. So, don't give in to their bullying. Good luck.

Start with a look at the DVLA website. Google search for: DVLA, Voluntary Code of Practice for Private Car Parking Enforcement. This may give you some hints where UKCPS is going wrong. I had a Charge Notice from CP Plus Limited in a Super Market parking lot in London in 2003. It was enclosed a plastic sleeve with the writing: PARKING NOTICE ENCLOSED WARNING IT IS AN OFFENCE FOR ANY PERSON OTHER THAN THE DRIVER TO REMOVE THIS NOTICE. You may ask what is wrong with this? CP Plus Ltd is using plastic sleeves for parking tickets to be issued under the RTA 1991. Therefor giving the impression to act with the powers of local government. It is unlawful for private companies to act as if they have enfocement power under the RTA 1991. It's a bit like impersonnating the police. I wrote a letter to CP Plus pointing this out and have never heard from them again. Those private parking enforcement companies are just hired bullies. Hope this helps.

Hi all, This is my first post. Having spent many hours over two evenings to understand all the issues of PCN validity I am now quite confused. I have received a PCN recently from LB Brent. It does have two dates but no colour of the car and there is no signature of the parking attendant. I would be obliged for your comments so that I can get me wording right. Many thanks. http://www.system-solutions.eu/front_ticket.jpg