Free Traffic Legal Advice
Live cases legal advice => Civil penalty charge notices (Councils, TFL and so on) => Topic started by: robbieuk on September 25, 2025, 01:02:39 pm
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As the hire companny is the vehicle owner would they not need to contact dvla?
The finance company are not the vehicle owner (as in title) because they did not purchase the car from A N Other on 8 August(my previous post refers). Neither are they a 'hire company'. But don't let your friend get distracted by this. Notify them anyway, what's to lose?
Also, once they get the crime reference, contact the council with the numberplate pictures (also small writing underneath registration), but I have feeling the council will not be very supportive and this may go all the way to adjudicators?
There's every likelihood. In his 2023-2024 Annual Report the Chief Adjudicator wrote that in the absence of clear guidance from government adjudicators were likely to continue to have to deal with appeals on this point(see page 16: https://www.londontribunals.gov.uk/sites/default/files/Annual%20report%20202324.pdf)
Pl reinstate all imgur links as they're no longer accessible.
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Thank you very much, I will ask the friend to get the ball rolling. Will ask him to get the police crime reference number, also contact DVLA, I assume as it is the hire purchase car, the finance company needs to be informed too? As the hire companny is the vehicle owner would they not need to contact dvla?
Also, once they get the crime reference, contact the council with the numberplate pictures (also small writing underneath registration), but I have feeling the council will not be very supportive and this may go all the way to adjudicators?
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The one from the PCN clearly has screws at the end of the plate whereas your pic doesn't - looks like a clone. Need to report it (although someone else here had trouble getting a crime number out of them). Expect more PCNs....
You need to report the cloning to the Police and get a crime reference number. If the Police give you the run-around then try https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/ . That's what a another recent poster had to do (https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/car-reg-got-cloned-met-won-t-issue-crime-reference-number-lambeth-council-won-t-/msg89696/#msg89696).
You also need to inform the DVLA, try phoning 0300-790 6802 as I'm not sure you can report online, who will put a marker on the VRM. The DVLA will want the crime reference number. Then prepare to be stopped by the Police yourself as their ANPR will flag up your car as a possible clone.
The fraudsters will likely look for another VRM to clone after a couple of weeks, to avoid being stopped by the Police.
The differing screw positions suggest that the clone is not the exact same model as yours. Take some close-up reference photos of your car. All sides of the car.
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The one from the PCN clearly has screws at the end of the plate whereas your pic doesn't - looks like a clone. Need to report it (although someone else here had trouble getting a crime number out of them). Expect more PCNs....
+1
Definitely a clone, as the council photo of the numberplate clearly shows the two mounting screws at the end of the numberplate whereas your friend's car has the mounting screws much further in.
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The one from the PCN clearly has screws at the end of the plate whereas your pic doesn't - looks like a clone. Need to report it (although someone else here had trouble getting a crime number out of them). Expect more PCNs....
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I took a picture of the car number plate. It looks similar writing but the screws are in different position than the ones in the picture? Or is it just me imagining things?
https://ibb.co/Q36wZ9PL
imgur does not work in UK since 30th September :(
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The recipient of the postal PCN need not be the driver "on the day". So the keeper as per the V5C can say he wasn't the driver, but it seems the car was, (or a car with his registration). So once it has been determined that the keeper getting ready for his holidays had the car within his sight and the keys to drive it were in his possession, then it could be a cloning of the numberplate. If this is the car, the cloning is a criminal offence and a crime has been committed, so the owner needs to contact the police. But do this only when all other avenues have been investigated and turned up nothing.
Of course, your friend may be under the impression that as he wasn't the driver they can do nothing, but this is not so. The legislation and regulations that go back to 1991, place responsibility for decriminalised motoring offences onto the owner of the vehicle, and this is assumed the keeper on the V5.
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who ever it was driving wasn't hanging about were they !
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Doesn't appear to be a plate misread so either:
1. The car was there
2. It's a clone
For 1, as HCA says, friend needs to think carefully about what he was doing and who else might have had use of the car. Google timeline if he has an Android phone?
For 2, vid is low res, but the enhancement of the plate is clear. Compare it to plate on the car - any differences?
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So, this would explain part of the issue, but not all:
8 August: car was registered to A N Other;
8 August: car purchased from A N Other by your friend;
Contravention date: 14 August;
V5C not amended until: 15 September;
First PCN sent to A N Other who makes successful reps that they were not the keeper by virtue of having sold the vehicle before the contravention;
Fresh PCN issued to your friend, almost certainly in time.
Your friend was the owner prior to 14th, but they're adamant 'that on that day (evening) he was making last preparations for holidays next day and there is no way he was in the area.'
So, who did have access to the car, was it even in your friend's possession on 14th or perhaps lent to someone else/in a garage?
IMO, simply saying it wasn't him won't succeed because he admits to being having bought the vehicle and therefore presumed to be the keeper on 14th.
By the way, IMO paying £15000 for a car valued at £8600 is usurious, but there we are.
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The purchase was on 8th August and finance organised via Oddle. The financial statement's first page refers to it as Hire Purchase. They will massively overpay for the car and something they really regret now for going ahead as the purchase was sudden (they suddenly decided to go to Europe family trip with a car).
https://imgur.com/a/KJEXSlN
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A new logbook was issued only a few days ago on 15 Sept.
This vehicle is a black Ford first registered in June 2017 so unlikely it is on hire purchase surely.
(https://i.ibb.co/xpt9fVz/Screenshot-2025-09-25-at-16-30-13.png)
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Must be out of time then.
Here's the evidence.
(https://i.ibb.co/M5MmjPfX/Get-Video-ezgif-com-video-to-gif-converter.gif)
(https://i.ibb.co/xS0CmgRT/en3.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/hFysDP7W/en2.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/TDt1QF2k/en1.jpg)
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Thank you. So the car is Hire Purchased and the friend is registered keeper (the pcn arrived on registered keeper name too).
Vehicle registration is BL17NBJ and PCN number is EF99196898
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+1
PCN from Enfield Council stating that he has failed to comply with prohibition of motor vehicles.
Not 'he' but the vehicle.
So an obvious issue could be, as per stamfordman, that the vehicle belongs to another party, perhaps leased/hired. This is supported by the lateness of service.
So is the PCN actually addressed to your friend and are they the keeper of the vehicle?
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What are the PCN number and VRM as we can't look at the evidence without these.
Is the vehicle leased as the PCN is out of time at 15 Sept, contravention date 14 August.
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Hi, I wonder if you could advise what my friend should do in this situation.
Few days ago he received a PCN from Enfield Council stating that he has failed to comply with prohibition of motor vehicles. Evidence shows the vehicle passing through a restricted area.
However my friend is adamant that he has never been in that area. He is adamant that on that day (evening) he was making last preparations for holidays next day and there is no way he was in the area.
What steps he should take now?
I have uploaded PCN on imgur - https://imgur.com/a/3Bjnn1o
We would really appreciate your thoughts as he is at complete loss what to do. Contact DVLA? Police? I am clueless too