Online Solicitor

It’s Halloween, so I thought I’d write about everybody’s nightmare – parking tickets. They are awful things; without doing harm to anyone or anything, you nevertheless wind up with a fine that can be up to £120! It’s no surprise, therefore, than thousands of people try to appeal their parking ticket. Here are some decent grounds for appealing:

1. You don’t own the vehicle – often only the case if you have recently sold your car.
2. The penalty exceeded the amount shown on the sign.
3. The car was stolen at the time
4. The offence never occurred in the first place (no ticket was issued, there were no clear signs or markings etc)

In the vast majority of cases, number 4 is the most appropriate reason for appealing. It is worth bearing in mind the following, however:

Having a valid permit isn’t enough to invalidate a parking fine – the permit has to be on clear display. If there is evidence that it was not clearly display – and there is likely to be – you aren’t in a strong position. Since April 2008, parking tickets can also be sent by post – they don’t have to have been applied to your car. It is wise to ask for photographic evidence if you receive a surprise parking ticket, then check it carefully to ensure it is a genuine contravention.

HOWEVER:

If there aren’t clear signs on every single road leading into a restricted parking area, then you have grounds to appeal your ticket. If you get a ticket, check every road leading to the parking area; check both sides of the road and look for signs that are covered, smalls, faded or broken – all these can lead to your ticket being invalid. In the case of parking bays, there must be signs within 5 metres of each end of the bays. If you parked on a double yellow line, check that the line is unbroken and ends in a ‘T’. Breaks in the line, or failure to have a ‘T’ at the end of the line invalidate tickets. Of course, in all the above cases you will need to provide photographic evidence of the reason for appeal.

If your ticket was for parking outside of a marked bay, it is well worth measuring the bay to ensure it meets the requirements for the minimum size. If it isn’t at least 1.62 metres wide from edge of kerb to outer edge of line, it is too small and your ticket is likely invalid.

Although unloading vehicles is not allowed on double yellow lines, it is perfectly fine to unload on a single yellow line for up to 20 minutes. If you receive a ticket within 20 minutes, it isn’t valid. Of course, it will help to have proof that you were loading or unloading your vehicle at the time – contracts and witnesses work well.

Good luck!