Free Traffic Legal Advice

Have you moved address since the PCN was served to you, and if so, when ?

London bus lane enforcement is a two-stage process; first the PCN is served, then if ignored, not paid, or representations are submitted, but rejected, the council can serve an Enforcement Notice (EN). If this is, again ignored, not paid or reps are rejected, the council can serve a Charge Certificate.

You have not mentioned anything about the Enforcement Notice; did you receive one ?

Based on what you have told us, and knowing the PCN was for a London bus lane contravention, there is now only a single legal avenue open to you to get the matter reverted to the Enforcement Notice stage. This process is for you to submit an Out-of-Time Statutory Declaration to state that you submitted a representation to the adjudicators, (this is London Tribunals), but received no response.
The forms to use for this are the PE3 (the Statutory Declaration), and PE2 (Application to submit an SD out-of-time). These can be downloaded from the Traffic Enforcement Centre website: -



Both forms must be witnessed by a solicitor or by a court official at your local county court

In order to close your liability to the bailiffs, and to stop any further action like seizure of goods, we recommend that you pay them now. Payment does not affect consideration of your OOT SD submission.

In view of the importance of getting the SD submission accepted, I aso recommend you contact: -

www.bailiffadviceonline.co.uk

Their website is a mine of information, and they will, for a small fee assist you with completing your two forms

Edit
Just to add that if your OOT SD is accepted, you are entitled to get all the money refunded, but the PCN remains outstanding, so if the adjudicator decides you have lost, you don't get the PCN penalty back.

Hello everyone,

I would like to ask for your advice regarding a traffic penalty that was issued nearly three years ago but was never received by me at the time.

The alleged contravention took place on 14 June 2023, and the PCN was issued on 28 June 2023. I had moved home on 17 May 2023, before the PCN was issued. However, the council sent all the penalty notices and statutory correspondence to my previous address, which was still held on the DVLA system. As a result, I never received the original PCN, the Enforcement Notice, the Charge Certificate, or any other statutory documents. Therefore, I lost the opportunity to challenge the penalty or pay the discounted amount within the relevant time limit.

According to the council’s records, the case progressed as follows:

* Alleged contravention: 14 June 2023
* PCN issued: 28 June 2023
* Enforcement Notice: 4 August 2023
* Charge Certificate: 7 September 2023
* Order for Recovery: 22 September 2025
* Case referred to enforcement agents: 9 January 2026

I only became aware of this penalty nearly three years later when I received an enforcement notice from CDER Group. Before that, I had not received any penalty notice or statutory correspondence.

After becoming aware of the matter, I contacted the Royal Borough of Greenwich, CDER Group, and the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) separately. CDER Group informed me that they could not place the enforcement action on hold until they were notified of my application by the TEC or instructed to do so by the council.

The TEC explained that, if I wished to challenge the case, I would need to submit a PE3 Statutory Declaration together with a PE2 Application to File a Statutory Declaration Out of Time, as the normal deadline had already passed. I was also warned that if I did not take action, enforcement agents could visit my address and additional costs could be added.

I explained to the council that I had moved before the PCN was issued and that all the notices had been sent to my previous address. I also stated that I have a tenancy agreement proving the date of my move. The council responded that the notices had been sent by first-class post to the address obtained from the DVLA and that none of the correspondence had been returned. It also stated that the appropriate legal remedy was to submit an Out of Time Statutory Declaration to the TEC.

However, CDER Group did not suspend enforcement action. Because I was warned that enforcement agents could visit my address and that further charges could be added, I felt under serious pressure. To avoid additional costs and further problems, I had no practical choice but to pay the amount demanded.

The council now says that because payment has been made, the case is closed and it cannot be reopened or refunded.

This situation still does not feel fair to me. I had moved before the PCN was issued, I did not receive any of the statutory notices, and I was unable to exercise my right to challenge the penalty. I eventually paid only because of the pressure of enforcement action and the threat of further costs. I also do not understand why a penalty dating from 2023 only reached the enforcement stage nearly three years later.

I have attached the penalty notices, enforcement correspondence, and payment warning emails that I received.

I would be very grateful for advice from anyone with professional knowledge or experience in this area regarding what steps I should take next. I would also appreciate any guidance on whether there may still be a way to recover the amount I paid.

Thank you in advance.