Free Traffic Legal Advice

Hi all

Please help with any advice. A bit of a long story.

Today I received a charge certificate for £195. I never received any pcn before this. Date of contravention is 06/02/24 and notice to owner/pcn is identified as as 18/04/24.

Now for backstory:

I was in a serious car accident in December and garage via insurer provided a replacement vehicle from December - February. I definitely did not receive a pcn. I open every single letter, even junk, and have been through any remaining papers. I have reached out to the garage but no response yet as this has happened today. Is it likely Croydon Council found owner via DVLA, issued pcn to the garage and then charge certificate to me? Would the dvla have me down on a replacement vehicle? I suspect they would not have and that's why I did not receive original pcn.

Furthermore, pcn is for 52j failure to comply with a prohibition on certain types of roads. I've just checked footage and doesn't look like I've even done this -although I will go back to road tomorrow as it is late now. Basically, road is restricted but signage is facing outwards instead of direction of travel -so appears as no entry for vehicles when I am exiting the road. There is also roadworks closing the opposite side of road but as they don't have a view from my direction of travel neither of us have any proof of signage in my direction.

I have tried to upload an attachment but keep getting an error message.

Charge certificate has no appeal details as I have missed deadline, according to them. Anyone know best grounds for appeal or how to proceed. They definitely didn't send me a pcn but hard to prove I didn't receive it. Do I wait for next correspondence and complete a witness statement?

Thank you

Every time I try to post a pic it says: The upload folder is full. Please try a smaller file and/or contact an administrator.

You need to use a hosting site. Read this: -
https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/read-this-first-before-posting-your-case!-this-section-is-for-council-tfl-dartme/

Anyway, back to your case.....
Have you moved address since the accident ?

PCN would have gone to the V5 holder for the car. They would then have submitted reps on the basis of being a hire company, and would have supplied the name and address of the hirer.

I'll check signage tomorrow

We don't need to go into the details of the contravention at present, this is purely procedural.

Can we be clear about who's who and the sequence of events pl.

You have received a Charge Certificate addressed to you;
This relates to the VRM of a vehicle which at the time, 6 Feb., you were driving under a hire agreement between you and ***;
Do you still have a copy of this agreement, or were you in fact just the driver of a vehicle hired to your insurance company;
What other correspondence do you have on this matter either addressed to you or given to you by another party which is the addressee?

There is nothing to be done with the CC as regards procedure, now's the time for fact finding.

Thanks, have answered below:

We don't need to go into the details of the contravention at present, this is purely procedural.

Can we be clear about who's who and the sequence of events pl.

You have received a Charge Certificate addressed to you;Correct
This relates to the VRM of a vehicle which at the time, 6 Feb., you were driving under a hire agreement between you and ***; My insurer sent the car via the garage of their preferred choice it was all done through them
Do you still have a copy of this agreement, or were you in fact just the driver of a vehicle hired to your insurance company; The driver of a vehicle hired to my insurance company
What other correspondence do you have on this matter either addressed to you or given to you by another party which is the addressee? None All I have is a charge certificate

There is nothing to be done with the CC as regards procedure, now's the time for fact finding.

Thanks. Have uploaded here https://imgur.com/a/gH43A6K

Here is first page of CC - any more pages?

Hi all.

I have found out some more info which will be vital.

Croydon Council sent the PCN to the garage.

1.The garage named me but the council sent them a notice of rejection dated 23/04/24 .
2. I received a charge certificate but no pcn dated 20/06/24
3. Council and claimed to have sent me the pcn 18/04/24 which clashes with the rejection they sent the garage
4. the garage claimed they named me as a driver but then randomly received the rejection
5. the road was previously no entry or exit with giant planters covering it (see link below)
6. as point 5 that means they definitely had to update the road removing the planters and adding signage
7. I visited today and the signage is there now but definitely was not on both sides of the road. I can see back of something on a lamp post one side of the councils footage but nothing on the other so impossible for there to have been any sign on one side
8. I have taken videos today. If you approach Sutherland road from one of the main roads there is no signage warning you that you are coming up to a restricted road (it's only visible from entrances further back on Sutherland road). Even if you do hit the two signs which are there now there was roadworks on the day I went passed (visible in the evidence council provided) and most of the roads if I reversed are no entry but tbh not sure if that counts as I could have reversed and gone straight up in opposite direction)

This means they would according to them have been chasing two people for the same ticket.

Link to notice of rejection sent to garage https://imgur.com/a/PwZANk0
Link to no entry that was previously on the road https://imgur.com/a/xHYXmA0