Free Traffic Legal Advice

@cp8759 @Hippocrates

Hello there,

I would be very grateful if you could provide some of your very helpful advice on this please?

Situation

My parents have received no less than three 52M PCNs from the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham within a 60-minute period on 30th May 2025!

Who was involved

Father – 86 year old, driving the car
Mother – 89 year old passenger being taken for a battery of cardiology tests at the nearby Royal Brompton Hospital on the morning of 30/5
Granddaughter – 7 years old being looked after by them during the half term holiday

So What happened?

My mother had a series of cardiology appointments at the Royal Brompton Hospital on 30/5.  This hospital borders Hammersmith & Fulham Borough.  It is a specialist hospital and not local to my parents.  They decided to drive to it, ironically, to save money on taxi fares.  Public transport is not an option for them due to my mother’s significant mobility issues.
During that week they were also looking after their seven-year-old granddaughter whilst her parents worked –this week was the school half-term holiday in London.

These types of hospital appointments can take several hours.  Several hours in a hospital waiting room with little to do would be challenging for a seven-year-old.  Consequently, my parents decided that father would drop mother to the appointment and then leave with the granddaughter but stay close to the general area and await the phone call telling him to come and collect.

Contextually my parents lived in Fulham from the 1960s until 1995.  Given this my dad has decided that it would be nice to take his granddaughter to the parks and play areas that his children (her parent) grew up playing and running around in. 
He has duly attempted to do so but given how long ago it was that he lived there, and how much the area has changed he has got a little lost whilst trying to get to some of the favourite haunts.  Both the stress of getting lost and then the granddaughter apparently needing the loo urgently has meant that he’s meandered his way around some of the streets, not really getting to where he needed to be and getting increasingly stressed out.  Under the circumstances perhaps it is not that surprising that he has has not noticed the signs that prohibit driving on certain roads if you are not a resident. 

Key Points

1. As you can see from the PCN letters (links below).  He has been picked up by cameras twice (10.20 and 11.02 AM) in “Harwood Terrace SWband nos 1 – 33” within a 42 minute by what appears to be the same camera from the photo (the PCN states they are different cameras).

2. He has also been captured on camera by what appears to be a totally different camera at 11.20 AM on Bagleys Lane NWbnd nos 2a – 12.  This time it says it’s the same camera as one of the Harwood terrace shots.

3. Bagleys Lane and Harwood terrace are very close to each other and are in fact perpendicular roads.

4. All three PCNs occur within a 60 minutes period

So clearly, we can’t dispute that he has driven down these roads but three 80 GBP fines for making essentially the same mistake in a small area of Fulham over a small amount of time seems significantly excessive and harsh.  It is quite a lot of money for retired people to fork out.

Is there anything that can be done to persuade the Borough to reduce the number of fines / waive them altogether given the circumstance – hospital visit etc?  I think we can safely say they won't be driving around Fulham anymore!

Appreciate any help and advice you can provide.

Many thanks for your time.
Best wishes
Alex

Camera Locations

Harwood terrace

https://maps.app.goo.gl/HRbtVCQ3PaHWfA7u7

Bagleys lane

I can’t find a camera that matches the photo in the PCN (i.e. I can’t find it on the Google street view and I don’t live in London so can’t have go and look) 
this is the camera I can find on Street view for Bagleys lane.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/FwAaPbni12XHetXS8

PCNs

BB Links for actual PCN letters

[img width=956.4000244140625 height=1466]https://i.imgur.com/ZkKKj03.jpg[/img]
[img width=956.4000244140625 height=1466]https://i.imgur.com/T0C6w0V.jpg[/img]
[img width=956.4000244140625 height=1466]https://i.imgur.com/CIEheSh.jpg[/img]
[img width=956.4000244140625 height=1466]https://i.imgur.com/qtjHp6l.jpg[/img]
[img width=956.4000244140625 height=1466]https://i.imgur.com/Hm4R1Wo.jpg[/img]

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

@cp8759 can you help me with my case please. I got a ticket by tfl red route for doing a restricted u turn. They rejected the appeal and never sent me the rejection letter I only got the charge certificate

H&F has been sympathetic to such PCNs in this low traffic area especially where people have been accessing local places/facilities. But goodwill seems to be over now.

However, I think paying the first and asking for discretion on the other two could work by providing your explanation in timings/reasons.

Quote from: stamfordman on June 16, 2025, 11:15:15 pm

H&F has been sympathetic to such PCNs in this low traffic area especially where people have been accessing local places/facilities. But goodwill seems to be over now.

However, I think paying the first and asking for discretion on the other two could work by providing your explanation in timings/reasons.

Thank you Stamfordman for taking the time to read and respond - very much appreciated.

Noted and will certainly try that as it's the truth. 

Any view/or experiences out there of people receiving multiple PCNs in such a short period of time - and advice on how to respond to that specific part of the issue - this part seems punitive?

Many thanks

@Hippocrates @cp8759 @stamfordman

Hi All,

Any (further) comment on this before I contact the council?

Any thoughts on multiple tickets in such a short space of time in a small locality?

Thanks V much.

OP, you're falling into the trap which many OPs do which is to impute too much knowledge to the authority. It happens.

The representations stage exists to put the registered keeper's side of the story. So, what doesn't the authority know?

The circumstances of the journeys;
The circumstances of the driver;
That 3 journeys occurred around the same time and under the same circumstances.

IMO, as regards the contraventions the RK's grounds should at least be 'penalty exceeded .....circumstances of the case'.

You've set these out in detail in the thread, these now need to be presented to the authority. But IMO set the tone recognising what they didn't know when the PCNs were issued.

Who is the RK and the person to whom the PCNs are addressed? Only they may make representations. You could either draft for them and them send or they give you written authority to make them on their behalf.

Hi there,

Just as an update on this the appeal was rejected and a notice of rejection sent via email yesterday. 

However the rejection letter has come in 63 calendar days after the appeal was logged (19/625 - 21/8/25 = 63 CALENDAR days). 

I was under the impression* that any response to an appeal had to be received within 56 days and if any later than that then "they will be deemed to have accepted the grounds in question".

Am I correct in this and if so should I now appeal to the London Tribunal (as the council has suggested as an option)?

N.B I am counting calendar days not weekdays...

Guidance gratefully accepted!

Best wishes

* https://www.londontribunals.gov.uk/eat/understanding-enforcement-process/parking-penalty-charge-notice-enforcement-process