Free Traffic Legal Advice

Hi again,

Apologies, I thought I'd made the image public, it should work again now:

https://imgur.com/a/fpn-310525-hillingdon-apcoa-back-sxZOnht

I have good news. I appealed online to the council, on the basis that despite having my driving licence, they spelt all 3 of my names incorrectly, and the incident happened outside a very different number house to the one that they reported. The council initially replied with the following:

"Hello,

Your report to Challenge FPN reference number: 6729-5162-4215-7218 has been closed.

The closure reason provided is: Challenge to be reviewed

FPN challenge under review by APCOA

Kind regards,

The Street Scene Enforcement Team"

I then received this from APCOA:

"Thank you for your challenge in relation to the above Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN).
Further to your enquiry concerning the FPN that was issued to you on (31/05/2025) we can confirm under
the circumstances outlined we have on this occasion cancelled this FPN as a goodwill gesture.
The FPN is now cancelled and requires no further action from you. Please note that should you get
another FPN under similar circumstances this may not be cancelled.
Kind regards
Environmental Team"

So despite how spurious my appeal was, it seems, as I hoped, that I got off on a technicality or 2.

Similarly, the behaviour of traffic officers to particularly Private Hire drivers around Heathrow has shifted, from polite request to move on, to much more aggressive discussion after they've got the cameras working. It may be worth drivers taking photos themselves, if, for example, the APCOA officers and colleagues park illegally themselves while trying to 'book' PH drivers. It is also worth pointing out technical errors, which is the point of my initial request to FTLA, as it may get you off. Avoiding parking in the PSPO areas completely is, of course, the best tactic, and driving away before any discussion or photos taken may also avoid further action from the officers, but I wouldn't guarantee it.

Thanks again for your help.

Hello cp8759, and thanks for your previous comment. Have you had a chance to review my reply please? I need to pay the fine or appeal by  Friday 13th June and just need to know if you believe I’ve a case based on wrong address and/or misspelt names? Thanks in advance…

Good morning,

I received a FPN on 31st May for parking within a PSPO, and usually you are asked to move on, however on this occasion, the first action was the officer taking a photo of me and my PH car. On request, I showed my driving licence and complied with the officer throughout. I understand subsequently that I didn't have to present my licence and should probably have driven away at the first sighting of the officer.

I have not paid the fine yet; I'm still within the 14 days for lesser amount of £50, however the ticket has my first, middle and surname all spelt incorrectly, albeit close to correct in each case, and it states I was parked outside 96 Bolton's Lane, Hillingdon, when I was actually parked outside 28 Bolton's Lane.

While these may be minor 'errors' on the ticket, are these points worth appealing to Hillingdon Council?

Many thanks for your help and consideration and please let me know if you cannot see the image.

https://imgur.com/a/vNVrk2u