Another one bites the dust! I won!!
However, disappointingly:
* the adjudicator did not opine on how appropriate or not it was to place signs with multiple lines of text in a location, outside the train station, where it is impossible to read it safely unless the driver comes to a complete stop for a few seconds
* the adjudicator also said that, if the wrong dates on the website had been in the past rather than in the future, it would have been more acceptable. But surely it is the council's responsibility to ensure their website reports the correct dates all the time??
The adjudicator directs London Borough of Wandsworth to cancel the Penalty Charge Notice.
Adjudicator's Reasons
The agreed facts are that the vehicle was at the stated location and a Penalty Charge Notice was
issued on Saturday 16/09/2023 at 15:22. Restrictions apply from 1:00-8:30 pm on Saturdays if this is
an "event day". The Appellant says the signs nearby did not state this day was an "event day".
A single yellow lines means restrictions apply at some time, and the hours are either set out on
timeplates within the road or, in the case of a CPZ, on all entry points to the zone.
The sign relied on by the Authority is a CPZ sign that says that the next event day is 5.9.16.30
September. The Appellant wrote to the Authority stating that different event days appeared on their
website and has provided a photoshot of one taken on 23/09/2023 that gives the next event day as 12
and 13 October 2023. The Authority says the sign on the website is an example of the type of sign
displayed and so the dates thereon are not relevant.
I do not accept that it is reasonable for driver, who checks the Authority's website, to conclude that the
date stated as 12 and 13 October 2023 is an example only. If checked on 23/09/2023, one would not
expect to see October 2023 dates. Had the dates been in the past, then that is more acceptable.
Thus even if the CPZ sign is correct, the information on the website is misleading to drivers so the
appeal is allowed.
