Free Traffic Legal Advice

Hello all,

I’m seeking advice as the registered keeper regarding a ParkingEye Parking Charge Notice relating to John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford.

Key details:

Operator: ParkingEye Ltd

Location stated: John Radcliffe Hospital – Arterial Road, Oxford

Date of alleged event: 06/01/2026 – 07/01/2026

ANPR times:

Entry: 21:3x

Exit: 02:3x

PCN amount: £100

Appeal window: Missed

Current position: ParkingEye now assert keeper liability under POFA

Context

This PCN relates to a late-night emergency hospital visit.
The driver had to urgently attend A&E, and the vehicle was left in a corner bay adjacent to the emergency department.

The understanding is that this bay is not part of the public pay-and-display car park, and appears to be intended for hospital use rather than general public parking. The public parking facilities are located on a different road, approximately a 10-minute walk away.

Given the late hour and urgent situation, the driver used this location believing it to be the only practical option at the time. The vehicle did not obstruct hospital operations or other vehicles, particularly given the overnight timing.

ParkingEye’s allegation appears to rely solely on ANPR entry/exit timestamps (the evidence in the first letter is very dark and appears to be taken at entry/exit somewhere as it appears the car lights are on and it is not at the point where the car was parked), rather than evidence that the vehicle was parked in:

a public parking area subject to payment, or

a location where ParkingEye had authority to offer parking contracts to members of the public, or

an area with clear and prominent signage communicating contractual terms

I have not identified the driver at any stage and am dealing with this solely as the registered keeper.

My understanding / confirmation sought

My understanding is that no harm has been done by not responding to ParkingEye so far, and that the correct approach is to wait unless and until one of the following is received:

A Letter Before Claim / Letter of Claim, or

A County Court Claim Form from the CCBC

Until then, my assumption is that there is no obligation to respond, and that this does not weaken any future defence.

I would appreciate confirmation from experienced members that this understanding is correct.

Points I would appreciate guidance on



Whether ParkingEye can form a contract in a restricted or hospital-only bay

Reliance on ANPR entry/exit times rather than parking in a managed public car park

Any hospital-specific defence points commonly relied upon

What evidence should be gathered now, should this proceed


No Letter Before Claim or court papers have been received at this stage.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Thanks a lot, your response was re-assuring and helpful.

In a bit of a panic I sent an email to the fuel station where the fine was issued and asked them to check the CCTV and request the fine to be cancelled as I was a genuine customer.
They came back with, they do not have the CCTV footage from July and asked me to provide the PCN scan to them, which I did.

Another email arrived yesterday from the store confirming that EURO Carparks have cancelled the PCN.. which is great.

"Morning,

I can confirm Euro car parks have cancelled the ticket.

Regards"

Thank you so much for your help, really appreciate the work you guys are doing. Cheers!

Hi,

I have received the letter attached: https://imgur.com/a/HY92kHd

Can you please suggest where to go from here, panic!

Thanks for the advice!

Does the entrance sign to the location conform to Appendix B?

I looked but couldn't find any particular sign at the entrance, only these 5 signs in the parking.

Thanks for responding.
I think there is one sign but it is nearby so I will go tomorrow and take pictures.
There is a co-op shop and a post office in a corner inside.

Hi,

My family (3 adults and 2 children) were stuck in a lift of a museum for more than an hour, where we visited as a birthday treat for my daughter.
This included baby who just turned 1 year and high blood pressure patient (mother in law).
The museum staff took it pretty light in the beginning and were saying we have asked the engineer to come out we can't say how long it will take, could be an hour or more and they were happy to just wait.
My family was complaining that it is a small lift and feeling suffocating so I called the emergency service 999 who came out and eventually had to cut the steel door open. This resulted in dust being built up initially while cutting the door and people inside along with the baby started coughing and crying, cutting was stopped then and the glass panel was removed to pass on some masks and ear muffs to people inside.
Finally they were out after the agony of more than an hour, mother in law's blood pressure had already shot up and was not feeling well at all, overall it was a very traumatic experience for my family.

After the engineer arrived around 2.5 hours later, he said why didn't you used a key to open which the museum staff confirmed that they had but didn't know where to insert it (it was a metal key similar to the one used for meter cabinets or loft doors)

Do you see a case here? may be lack of lift maintenance, lack of staff training on using the key to open the door as the lift had almost arrived but the door wouldn't open and lift was not moving to come up the final half a meter.
The lift company contact number was not picking up the call either after first conversation that engineer will be on the way, if they had a person who could've guided the fire staff then most probably there wouldn't have been a need for all that loud banging and hazardous cutting that took place.

The museum has refunded the tickets for the day.

Any suggestions are helpful, thanks

Hi,

Location: Manor Hospital Oxford parking
Company: Euro Car Parks

I was issued a PC Notice for using the car park on 22nd July due to a visit to the hospital.

Notice issued on 28th July.

Appealed on 6th Aug by providing the appointment letter with a doctor at the hospital and stated that the number plate was entered on the tablet in the hospital, It must be an issue with the number entering device and should be checked.
Considering this was a legitimate reason for using the parking, the penalty should be dismissed.

Considering the behaviour of these companies, I won't be surprised if they come back and insist that I pay the fine.
I believe the next step will be that I will need to appeal with POPLA, so I'm preparing in advance and have the advantage of time on my side, is there anything I can use should I need to appeal with POPLA?

Your guidance will be highly appreciated.

Thanks!

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