Free Traffic Legal Advice

From your narrative I think you are entitled to the "assisted boarding" exemption. Can you please outline what you did on arriving with your car through to your mother being in the car ready for you to drive off.

You misunderstood. At the moment I am assuming you parked the car, then left it to go to where your mother was staying, and assist her to your car. This is called "assisted boarding". Normal boarding is where the passenger can wait or come to the roadside unassisted to board the car. I just wanted you to tell us what you did between parking the car and driving away with your mother on-board. Boarding/alighting passengers is an exemption to most restrictions like yellow lines. 

How long dod it take - if you were in and out with your mother then you have a shot at assisted boarding. You need a convincing account as to why she shouldn't wait at the kerbside.

You don't want to volunteer a time, only as long as necessary and necessarily a bit longer than the observation time, and you have the BB as evidence.

But 10 mins as in this case can be seen as reasonable by an adju
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Case reference 2250464004
Appellant Maimuna Jallow
Authority London Borough of Tower Hamlets
VRM GP24HFK
PCN Details
PCN TT59171456
Contravention date 18 May 2025
Contravention time 11:57:10
Contravention location Commercial Street
Penalty amount GBP 160.00
Contravention Parked resident/shared use without a valid permit
Referral date -
Decision Date 02 Feb 2026
Adjudicator Sean Stanton-Dunne
Appeal decision Appeal allowed
Direction
cancel the Penalty Charge Notice and the Notice to Owner.

Reasons
Mr Edrissa Cham has attended the hearing today as the authorised representative of the appellant.

Mr Cham says that he was collecting his 94 year old grandma and that, upon arrival, she was experiencing chest pains and acute breathlessness. He says that he placed her down in the correct position and provided her with inhalers until she eventually stabilised. Mr Cham says that the whole incident was less than 10 minutes and that he walked his grandma to the car with his brother when she was recovered.

The picking up exemption allows for a motorist to leave a vehicle where a passenger requires assistance. It is more likely than not to be the case that a 94 year old may need some assistance when being picked up.

I am satisfied that the purpose of the vehicle being parked was to collect a passenger. The fact that assistance then had to be provided due to an emergency situation does not alter the reason for the vehicle being stopped. I would not in any case regard a period of parking of 10 minutes to be excessive for collecting an elderly passenger and helping them back to the vehicle. I am satisfied on balance that the picking up exemption applies in this case.

Fine. YOu don't want to say too much in what is, after all, only an informal challenge. It allows them to reject and also write a load of tosh about the boarding exemption which they hope will encourage you to cough-up. So submit this, and post up their inevitable rejection when you get it.

Total and utter tosh, needless to say, because it totally ignores your representations, which are based on boarding/alighting passengers, not parking.

Of course, because you submitted an 'informal challenge', you have received the usual Fob-Off letter that all London councils send out. They send out this nonsence because they know that almost all people, (>95%), just cough-up when they receive it, knowing nothing about the law, and glad to get the discount, and "closure" of the matter.

If you are prepared to stand you ground and take them all the way to London Tribunals you have a very strong case for cancellation of the PCN, and indeed a costs award. However you must now wait for the Notice to Owner, and submit those same representations again, and also point out in them that their reply to your informal challenge totally ignored the whole basis of your representation. You then demand that they accept that the board/alight exemption permitted you to park there and collect your aged and arthritic mother.

The NtO is sent by post to the owner of the car, using the name and address on the V5C Registration Certificate, so are you the owner, and is the address up-to-date and correct in all details.

@Incandescent

The council responded to my  letter:

Dear xxxx,

Traffic Management Act 2004
Penalty Charge Notice: AO08385708
Date of Contravention: 21/01/2026 at 19:28
Location of Contravention: Ruislip Road East (GRE)
Nature of Contravention: 25 Parked in a loading place or bay during restricted hours
without loading

Vehicle Registration Mark: KS67YUD

NOTICE OF DECLINE OF CHALLENGE

Thank you for your correspondence regarding the above Penalty Charge Notice (PCN).
We have carefully considered your challenge, however have decided not to cancel your PCN.

You were issued a PCN for parking in a loading bay without loading. Loading bays are
designated for the loading, unloading, delivery or collection of goods only.
Loading bays should not be used for waiting or parking.

If your vehicle is stationary in a loading bay for two minutes without loading or unloading taking
place, a PCN may be issued. The Civil Enforcement Officer (CEO) noted that your vehicle was
observed for two minutes before the PCN was issued and during that time no loading or
unloading was observed.

Loading bays are designated for loading/unloading, or the delivery or collection of pre- arranged
goods. These bays should not be used for waiting or parking. The use of the vehicle to be
parked at this location must be necessary for loading/unloading, and not merely for
convenience. Therefore, it does not allow vehicles to stop here to collect or deliver small items,
even if it is convenient whereas it would be necessary to stop there for a heavy item that could
not be easily carried.

A vehicle may be parked in a loading bay only if involved in loading/unloading and only for as
long as necessary for the particular loading/unloading. The vehicle may not be parked up to the
maximum period merely because loading/unloading is conducted during part of that time. If the
CEO observes a vehicle parked in a designated loading for a period of 2 minutes and if no
loading/unloading takes place during that period, a PCN may be issued.

The location is adequately sign posted and the sign on display indicates the restriction times.
This rule applies to disabled badge holders too; it is not a situation where you may use your
disabled badge.
The Traffic Management Act 2004 specifies the procedure for challenging a parking ticket. As
we have already dealt with your informal challenge we are not obliged to respond to this further
correspondence or offer the discounted amount again.

You have these choices:
● You can pay the discount charge of £80.00 if your payment reaches us within 14 days
of the date of this letter. If we do not receive payment before the end of the period of 14
days beginning with the date that this letter is served on you then the full amount of
£160.00 will become due.
● If the PCN remains unpaid after the end of the period of 28 days beginning with the
date on which this Notice of Decline is served on you, we will send a Notice to Owner
(NTO) to the registered keeper of the vehicle. A person whom a Notice to Owner is
served will be entitled to make formal representations to us against the penalty charge
and may appeal to an adjudicator if these representations are rejected. The formal
representation must be made in the form and manner and within the time specified in
the Notice to Owner.
● It is not possible to appeal to an adjudicator without first making formal representations
to us. Please do not make a further challenge as we reserve the right to disregard any
further correspondence related to the notice before the NTO is served.
How to pay:
● ·online At www.ealing.gov.uk and follow the links to pay online.
● by phone 020 8825 6565 (24 hours) - have you Penalty Charge Notice number ready.
Not all credit and debit cards are accepted.
● by post Send your payment with the PCN number clearly identified to: Ealing Council,
Parking Services, PO BOX 46264, London, W5 2UN. Cheques or postal orders should
be made payable to “Ealing Council”. If you would like a receipt you should enclose a
self-addressed envelope along with your payment.
● in person Cash payment can be made in person at Greenford Depot, Greenford Road,
Greenford, UB6 9AP. A request to make cash payment with one of our parking officers
can be made at the depot entrance security hut between 09:00 and 16:00 from Monday
to Friday.

Yours sincerely,

London Borough of Ealing Parking Services

What would you advise be the next course of action?