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Location: Felixstowe Road Car Park, Abbey Wood
Date of alleged contravention: 12/12/2024 (20:24)
Date Challenge Sent: 13/12/2024
Date of Challenge Rejection Letter: 26/03/2025

Link to PCN, challenge rejection letter and photographic evidence: https://drive.proton.me/urls/KT5Z4AA8S0#U3zVOhiaGDoI

Google street view: Link here. Note: Car park not built at time of Google street view data collection.

Hi all,

The driver parked in a station car park at 19:25. They remembered later in evening they had not paid and then paid via RingGo app at 21:45 (£2.50 for overnight parking after 18:00). Upon returning to their car at 22:30, there was a PCN affixed to the windscreen of the car (time of contravention 20:24). This car park has changed their operating hours last year as they previously operated only between 8am-6pm every day. It now operated at all times, every day. This is the reason the driver forgot to pay in their haste to catch a train in the evening.

Please note the challenge was submitted on 13th December, but the rejection letter was received much later (dated 26th March). The challenge was a general plea to cancel it as the driver had paid for a ticket before they arrived back to the car, though it was too late.

Please let me know if there is any technical reason this might not be enforceable, otherwise they will pay it by 8th March for the reduced charge of £30. Many thanks in advance

The PCN looks OK.

Why do you think the re-offered discount ends on 8 March?

OP is mistaken, the letter re-offers the discount for 14 days from date of rejection letter which is 24th March, so final day is 8th April.

The PCN states "parked without payment of the parking charge", so at the time the CEO was correct to serve the PCN, but the OP paid later, and as the charge when he paid covers the overnight period from 18.00 onwards, payment was .

HOwever, does OP want to fight the matter on this basis and risk the full PCN penalty ? For me, payment was made, albeit late. Unlike paying in a car park late during the day, and paying much later, the payment would be timed from payment time, but here it covers the whole evening and overnight period.

The 56 days period is the limit for responding to formal representations against a Notice to Owner. Your representations were an informal challenge to a PCN served at the roadside, and there is no limit. Having said that, anything over three months would be regardes as unfair, and a brach of their legal duty to act fairly. So your point about a 56 day limit doesn't apply at the moment.

The next stage, if you don't pay up, is they will serve a Notice to Owner. Any reps against this must receive a response within 56 days.