Free Traffic Legal Advice

Just wanted to get views on whether to challenge this ticket.

Circumstances is that I was parked for less than 5 mins on a double yellow line at end of road. Reason was that I was waiting in middle of road for my 9 year old son to leave the house and get in car to school, however he tripped over badly on his way to the car. I pulled in briefly to return to help him and gather his bags. In the meantime, a parking warden must have put the ticket on my car.

The road is a parking permit only road. We have a permit.

Are these likely to be mitigating circumstances / worth appealing? Anything else I'm missing.

Tbh the road is a restricted parking zone from 8.30am to 6.30pm and always thought that is when the double yellows kicked in as people often park on them outside these hours, but maybe that is not the case.

Copy of ticket, photos and parking restrictions here:

https://ibb.co/album/5Wqgk6

Thank you for your reply @John U.K.

I wasn't entirely sure if assisting a vulnerable child would fall within the same scope of mitigating circumstances as assisted boarding / alighting given the fact it was stationary for less than 3 minutes.

Sadly the Highway Code doesn't give any guidance on what may or may not be accepted by the Tribunals. My experience in the past has been that they will give consideration to genuine circumstances hence the query. I also wasn't sure whether the signage that deals with the road restrictions may imply to others that the double yellow lines are only in operation from those times.

In any case, I assume from your response that you do not believe these would be grounds for an appeal and that I should simply pay the fine and not attempt an appeal.

I would be grateful for any alternative views.

Their evidence is the PCN and CEO's notes supported by photos. This shows your car parked on DYL, a first observed time of 7.43 and a contravention time of 7.45. From your account you did not see the CEO on your return, therefore it's reasonable to assume that you were out of sight from before 7.43 to at least 7.47, allowing time for the CEO to produce, sign and serve the PCN.

IMO, your reps should be constructed around this background.

Could you flesh out 'I pulled in briefly to return to help him and gather his bags' which implies that you saw him from your car and if you parked to assist him on the spot then as you could see him from the car then surely he, and then you, could see the car from where you/he were. Perhaps you were initially waiting further into PGA and then as you wanted to leave the car to check on your son had to find the nearest vacant kerbside location which you could see some way ahead albeit on DYL?

PCN issued 9th, therefore last day of 14-day discount period(and possibly risk-free period for making reps*) ends on 22nd.

You have time to draft reps which can then be reviewed.

*- pl post the back of the PCN then we can check.