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Parking tickets

Pay or appeal a parking ticket (Penalty Charge Notice)

To pay a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN), you will need to provide:

  • the vehicle registration number; and,
  • the Penalty Charge Notice number. This is prefixed by ZK or ZA.
  • a PCN can also be paid by telephone using your debit or credit card. 

Pay or appeal penalty charge notice

Penalty charge discount notice period

A discounted amount of either £25.00 or £35.00 is only applicable during the first 14 days from (and including) the date a Penalty Charge Notice is issued.

How do I challenge a penalty charge notice (PCN)?

There are three stages of the appeals process.

The council accept challenges or representations in writing. These can be by email or post. We may send our response to you by post only, so please include a postal address when emailing us.

All statutory documents (notice to owner, charge certificate and order for recovery) are sent by first class post.

Parking Services will carefully consider correspondence based on the information provided from a challenge or representation. It is important that you supply as much evidence as possible which supports your comments.

For example this could include:

  • evidence of a delivery
  • medical evidence
  • a pay and display ticket
  • crime reference number
  • proof of an emergency

Please remember that if you pay your PCN, a challenge will not be accepted as this is an admission of liability.

Stage 1 - Challenge

Challenges can be made by anyone and sent in writing to Parking Services.

A challenge received within the initial 28 day period from the date that the PCN is issued will be considered in line with policy. If the challenge is received within the first 14 days (during which the discounted rate applies), the council will extend the discount period whilst they consider it and will usually re-offer the discount period for a further 14 days if a letter of rejection is sent. If a challenge is rejected the council will provide information about the next stage in the process and explain why the decision has been made.

Second challenges are not accepted. However, if the council requests more evidence or details, a letter requesting the information within 14 days will be sent to the motorist. If the evidence is not received within 14 days, the challenge will be rejected.

If the challenge is accepted, the PCN will be cancelled and a letter will be sent to the motorist.

Stage 2 - Representations

A formal representation can be made by the owner of the vehicle following service of a Notice to Owner.

If a challenge is rejected, the council will send a letter clearly explaining the reason that this decision has been made and will serve a Notice to Owner (NTO) a few weeks later. A formal representation can then be submitted by the owner of the vehicle using the NTO and sent to the council. If the representation is rejected a Notice of Rejection will be sent which provides information about the next stage in the process.

If the council do not receive a representation within 28 days from the NTO, a Charge Certificate may be served and the motorist loses any further right to dispute the PCN.

Stage 3 - Formal appeal

A formal appeal can be made to the Independent Parking Adjudicator following a Notice of Rejection from the council.

Following the receipt of a Notice of Rejection sent by the council, if the owner of the vehicle is not satisfied by the outcome of a representation, the owner of the vehicle is then entitled to make an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.

The Traffic Penalty Tribunal is an independent body which has been set up to ensure that unresolved legal disputes between the motorist and the council can be heard at a formal tribunal hearing. This body is independent of the council.

An appeal can be heard by post (using all the paperwork and evidence sent to the Tribunal), by telephone hearing or by a personal hearing.

Notice to Owner (NtO)

The Notice to Owner (NtO) is the first legal notification that the registered keeper/owner of the vehicle will receive in relation to a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN). The PCN may or may not have been served on the registered keeper of the vehicle and therefore the NtO is the legal document upon which all subsequent enforcement of the PCN rests. The NtO includes details about PCN, explains how the process will continue if the charge remains unpaid, how to pay the PCN, instructions about how to make a representation and the grounds upon which a representation can be made.

There are nine grounds for making representations:

  1. The contravention did not occur
  2. I was not the owner/keeper of the vehicle at the time of the contravention
  3. The vehicle had been taken without my consent
  4. We are a hire firm and have supplied the name of the hirer
  5. The Penalty exceeded the relevant amount
  6. That there has been a procedural impropriety
  7. The traffic order was invalid
  8. The CEO was not prevented from serving the Penalty Charge Notice
  9. The Penalty Charge Notice was paid

Charge certificate

If a PCN remains unpaid 28 days following service of the Notice to Owner (NtO), the council will serve a Charge Certificate which informs the registered keeper/owner of the vehicle that there is no longer a formal right to appeal the PCN. The Charge Certificate also increases the charge by 50%, with from £50.00 to £75.00 or £70.00 to £105.00.

Order for recovery

If a PCN remains unpaid for a minimum of 14 days following service of the Charge Certificate, the council may register the charge as a debt at the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC). Once the debt has been registered the charge will increase to either £84.00 or £114.00 and the TEC will authorise the council to send an Order for Recovery for the outstanding amount. Following service of the Order for Recovery a debtor can either pay or fill in a Witness Statement which is supplied with the Order for Recovery.

Enforcement agents

If a PCN remains unpaid following the Order for Recovery, the council will apply to the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) for authorisation to prepare a Warrant of Control. When granted, the warrant is produced and the debt will be passed to a certified Enforcement Agent to collect the outstanding amount. The Enforcement Agent will apply fees in line with The Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014. At this stage, the council is no longer responsible for the collection of the unpaid debt and the debtor should contact the Enforcement Agent.

Enforcement Agents have specialised teams which consider and handle welfare or financial difficulties and therefore customers should discuss any concerns with them.