Please have a read of my draft below and advise:
I am making a formal representation against the above Notice to Owner and respectfully request that the Penalty Charge Notice and Notice to Owner be cancelled.
The PCN was not present inside the yellow sleeve
When I returned to my vehicle, I found a yellow PCN sleeve attached to the windscreen. However, the actual Penalty Charge Notice was not inside the sleeve.
The sleeve was therefore present, but the document containing the details of the alleged penalty was missing.
As a result, I did not have the actual PCN available to me and was unable to properly consider the alleged contravention or make an informed decision about whether to pay or challenge the PCN within the original period.
The first substantive notice I received containing the penalty details was the subsequent Notice to Owner.
Request for clarification regarding service of the PCN
I understand that the Council will have a contemporaneous electronic record of the PCN issued by the Civil Enforcement Officer.
I therefore ask the Council to confirm:
The exact time at which the PCN was generated/printed by the CEO.
The exact method by which the Council records that the PCN was served.
Whether the CEO's contemporaneous notes specifically record that the actual PCN was placed inside the yellow sleeve.
Whether the CEO's equipment or system records the time at which the PCN was printed or issued.
Whether the CEO was equipped with body-worn video at the relevant time and, if so, whether the footage records the PCN being placed inside the sleeve.
If relevant body-worn video exists, I request that it be preserved and made available.
I am not disputing the photographs of the alleged contravention contained with the Notice to Owner. My representation concerns specifically the service and availability of the actual PCN, which was not present inside the yellow sleeve when I returned to my vehicle.
Loss of the opportunity to deal with the PCN at the discounted rate
Because the actual PCN was missing from the sleeve, I did not have the information contained on the PCN or the opportunity normally provided following service of an on-street PCN to consider the allegation and either make representations or pay the penalty at the discounted rate.
I subsequently received the Notice to Owner with an increased penalty.
I respectfully ask the Council to take these circumstances into account when considering whether it is appropriate and fair to pursue the increased penalty.
Request for cancellation
In the circumstances, I respectfully request that the Council exercise its discretion to cancel the PCN and Notice to Owner.
Alternatively, if the Council is not prepared to cancel the PCN, I ask that the Council exercise its discretion to restore the original discounted amount, given that the actual PCN was not present in the sleeve and I was consequently deprived of the normal opportunity to deal with the penalty at the discounted rate.
If this representation is rejected, I request that the Notice of Rejection specifically address the issue of the missing PCN and explain what contemporaneous record the Council relies upon to establish that the actual PCN was placed inside the yellow sleeve.
I look forward to your response.
Yours faithfully,