"Another Fine Mess" ... Parking Chaos starts today

In a calamity worthy of the slapstick comedy heroes the new Traffic Management Act comes into force today ... ill-thought out, ill-conceived, unregulated and guaranteed to create "another fine mess."

The difference is however, that this one isn't funny.
There will be nothing amusing when you get a parking ticket issued through the post alleging a contravention some weeks earlier. I struggle to recollect events from the day before, but trying to retrace my footsteps (or my vehicle's tyre steps) from weeks earlier will be an impossible task.

Add to that the fact that as the Registered Keeper of a vehicle yo will be responsible for paying the Penalty Charge Notice ... and therefore responsible for tracing other persons steps ( ie. any other legal user of the vehicle).


Penalties will range from £40 to as high as £120 – rising to £180 for late payers – simply according to where in the country you park.

Two tier penalties will be introduced with higher penalties for more serious contraventions ... but no need for the call to the rocket scientist for a quote ... you guessed it, most of the contraventions (the most common) fall into the higher bracket thereby increaing the revenue for councls.

CCTV will be rolled out across the country to harvest revenue in the most profitable areas. Amusingly Wigan Council claimed that they would only be siting CCTV cameras where it was too dangerous for Parking Attendants (now renamed Civil Enforcement Officers under the new legislation) ... I personally do not want to live in a country where it is too dangerous for ANYONE to go and the priority under the Crime and Disorder Act is for the Police and Councils to reduce crime (and the fear of crime) in such areas ... not put up CCTV to harvest fine revenue.

This legislation is going to result in chaos and abuse of the belegured motorist who is going to become even more of a stealth tax victim.

Read what the Daily Express thinks here

Parking Tickets to arrive in the post

New legislation comes into force today and the parking rules hit the papers today...

CCTV parking fine councils fail to get permission to use new system Telegraph.co.uk - United Kingdom Barrie Segal, who has helped thousands of motorists challenge parking fines, said: "Councils had a lot of time to put forward their plans but the fact they ...

Parking tickets to arrive in the mail The Sun - London, UK DRIVERS could get parking tickets through the post under new rules coming into force today. Fines will be raised for some offences and lowered for others. ...

New rules on parking ticketsTeleText - Scotland,UKThe move includes the name "parking attendants" being changed to "civil enforcement officers", larger fines for some crimes and lower ones for others. ...

Parking rules undergo revamp The Press Association - New parking regulations are taking effect which could see offending motorists receiving parking tickets by post. The changes include the name "parking ...

New traffic penalties ensure drivers come first in parking ticket ... Times Online - UK Drivers will be given the benefit of the doubt in future in any parking ticket disputes, the chief adjudicator of the new traffic penalties coming into ...

If you expect the system to be fairer, more transparent and better regulated then you have another thing coming. It's going to give a whole new going to the phrase 'it's a fine day.'

Parking Wars on ITV's 'Tonight' programme

Friday night saw Parking Appeals' Neil Herron on the 'Tonight' Parking Wars Special.

Minister Rosie Winterton attempted to justify the new Traffic Management Act with claims that it would be 'fairer.'

The evidence is heavily stacked against ...

She does make a claim that the councils have had since 2005 to get their act together ... so there can be no excuses. For once I have a degree of sympathy with the councils ... the Guidance to the legislation only came out last week, hence the panic.

We will be revealing more soon but it looks like paperwork is not all ready ... and to those council officers feeding us the information about how chaotic things are and how paperwork is not ready, Traffic Orders are not all prepared and TMA compliant, keep the information coming. One day when the bubble completely bursts and this whole scam is exposed for exactly what it is ... licensed highway robbery, there will be many a court filled with evidence of fraud and malpractice.

To those councils who think that they can continue to issue Penalty Charge Notices to motorists in the full knowledge that lines, signs and Traffic Orders are not correct or paperwork is not compliant just click here ... its a copy of the 2006 Fraud Act. No excuses ... you have been warned.

If you missed it or want to watch again ... VIEW THE ITV CLIP HERE

Play
Parking Wars: Watch now
Jonathan Maitland investigates new laws that could lead to innocent drivers being falsely accused of crimes

Rosie Winterton thinks its 'FINE'

Unfortunately things are not 'fine' and the never will be ... because Justice Collin's in Robin Decrittenden's case, stated that parking tickets were not 'fines' they were 'civil responsibilities' and as such did not fall foul of the Bill of Rights 1689, which states:

"That all grants and promises of fines and forfeitures of particular persons before conviction are illegal and void."

Under Decriminalised Parking Enforcement there is no recourse to a Court ... the council raises the 'fine,' issues the 'fine' and collects and keeps the fine revenue.

You can appeal of course ... to an independent adjudicator. How is he funded? Well, he receives a levy of 60p from every 'fine.'

This is precisely why the Bill of Rights 1689 was created ... to prevent the abuse of the people by those in power ... and now they are 'at it' again. Is it any wonder that Decriminalised Parking Enforcement has decended into the lawless, uncontrolled, unregulated shambles that it is ... nothing more than licensed highway robbery.

The other amusing statement from 'our future is Rosie' was that all the councils were ready. At this moment in time we shall beg to differ ... but we have the evidence that she doesn't ;-)

The 31st March 2008 is the beginning of the end of Decriminalised Parking Enforcement. CCTV enforcement rolled out across the country. Civil Enforcement Officers allowed to issue parking tickets by post?

This was the day they went just a step too far.

10 Most Unreasonable Parking Tickets ... and it's gonna get worse than this

If you have had an 'unreasonable' parking ticket let us know ... admin@parkingappeals.co.uk

We reveal the ten most unreasonable parking fines of all time
Daily Mail
27th March 2008

Most drivers vent a little steam when they get a parking ticket - and the number who appeal successfully proves they're often right to be annoyed.
But a new list of the most ridiculous parking tickets ever issued shows that almost nothing will stop the determined parking warden from slapping a ticket on a vehicle.
Indeed, it suggests a host of ways that officious officials can take advantage of drivers when they are at their most vulnerable.

Driven to distraction:
Even mitigating circumstances such as falling prey to a heart attack or bank robbers cut no ice with some wardens

The pit-stop ambush
Lorry driver Michael Collins was on his way to collect a skip in London's Belsize Park when the road beneath him collapsed. A burst water main had created a deep hole where the front wheels of his 17-tonne lorry were now stuck.
While he was waiting for roadside assistance, a parking attendant appeared. To the astonishment of nearby residents - and despite Mr Collins' protests, she stood on tiptoe and plastered a parking ticket on his windscreen - while helpfully telling him: "You can appeal".

The trunk road swoop
If a tree fell on your car and you escaped death by inches, you might expect some sympathy from your local council. But there was no sign of compassion from Wychavon District Council for Nicky Clegg of Stoulton, Worcs, after when a tree crashed down on her car as she drove her 82-year-old mother and 11-year-old son.
Police dragged the wrecked car - with crushed bonnet, smashed windscreen and broken wing mirrors - to the roadside and told Mrs Clegg she could leave it there and pick it up the following day. When she came back, a parking ticket was stuck on the window.

The knock-down surprise
Think that being badly injured is an excuse to park illegally? Think again. When Nadhim Zahawi of South London was thrown from his scooter and left lying in the road with a broken leg, a heartless warden from Lambeth Council slapped a £100 ticket on his bike.

The cavalry attack
You leave your horse in the street and what do you expect to find when you get back? A small pile of manure perhaps, but not a parking ticket.
Yet this is exactly what happened to Robert McFarland, a retired blacksmith from Yorkshire, when he left his horse Charlie Boy for a few moments.
Under the vehicle description on the ticket, the over-zealous warden had written "brown horse".


You've been ticketed:
A warden prepares to issue a fine. But some attendants take rather less care over details, as our list shows

The daylight robbery
It was a terrifying ordeal for Fred Holt, 77, when he went to the bank and two masked men burst in brandishing an axe and a machete.
The robbers held the axe to a young cashier's throat while money was handed over, and the customers were forced to lie on the floor. Later, they had to give statements to police.
It seems traffic wardens had not listened when officers told them about the raid and asked them not to issue tickets. Mr Holt found a £30 parking ticket pinned to his windscreen for staying 20 minutes longer than allowed.

The donor kebab
"Do something amazing today" runs the slogan of the National Blood Service. In Sutton, a traffic warden did just that - by ticketing a blood donor lorry.
The mobile National Blood Service truck had parked at the same spot in Sutton, Surrey, for four years when the zealous parking attendant issued a ticket while donors gave blood inside.
Sutton council eventually waived the fine, saying the parking attendant had made a simple error of judgment. Or to put it more aptly, a rush of blood to the head.

The bus stop gambit
Manchester bus driver Chris O'Mahony pulled up at a bus stop in his No 77 to let passengers on. While he was handing them their tickets, a Manchester City Council parking attendant handed him one.
Passengers looked on in disbelief as the warden joined the queue to prepare the parking ticket, deposited the £40 notice and walked off.
The driver, apparently, had parked in a restricted area. The attendant said he'd been told to issue tickets to buses that park.
Council bosses cancelled the ticket and the warden was sent for retraining - hopefully as something other than a warden.

The heart attack attack
David Holmes felt chest pains as he was driving and headed for hospital, where he was forced to park on the roadside and was treated for a heart attack.
A nurse thoughtfully left a note on the windscreen explaining the emergency and saying Mr Holmes's daughter would pick the car up later.
It proved futile. A parking attendant slapped a parking ticket on the car and despite an appeal to the local council the £40 fine was not cancelled.

The random posting
Krister Nylander was dismayed to receive a parking ticket in the post for parking in Warwick.
But he knew the ticket had to be wrong - he lives in Sweden and had not visited England since he was 16.
The offending vehicle was his 20-ton snowmobile, which had barely ever left his barn, let alone Sweden.
How did it get the ticket? Absolutely no Ikea.

Driving home the lesson
A driving instructor was issued with a CCTV parking ticket when his pupil stalled while attempting a three-point turn and could not restart the car.
The offence? Parking more than 50 centimetres from the kerb.

• List compiled with the help of Barrie Segal, founder of AppealNow.com and author of the book, The Parking Ticket Awards: Crazy Councils, Meter Madness and Traffic Warden Hell To buy a copy, visit appealnow.com/book.html

Win the Prize for the 1st parking ticket issued under new Parking Laws

The new Parking Laws (under the Traffic Management Act 2004) come into force at 00.01 on 31st March 2008.

NATIONAL COMPETITION
Parking Appeals.co.uk is not only offering FREE LIFETIME'S MEMBERSHIP to the website and a bottle of champagne for the person who gets the first ticket in the country, we will also appeal that winner's ticket on behalf of the motorist, and, should the appeal be lost, we will also pay the ticket.


REGIONAL COMPETITION
As well as the national prize we will also be running a competition in each local authority area, broken down by Council area, London Borough or Transport for London. Again, simply scan the ticket, register your details and send it to us at simon@parkingappeals.co.uk

The first prize in each area for the first ticket issued in each area will be offered a year's free membership to the site.

Nominations are open for a month, so send us a scan of your ticket and we will get you on the leader board.

Meanwhile, you can still join by clicking the link below ...

Parking enforcement ... the new stealth tax in Cambridge

Wardens accused of ticketing a 'stealth tax'
Cambridge Evening News
raymond.brown@cambridge-news.co.uk

THE favourite haunts of traffic wardens in Cambridge can now be revealed by the News.

Parking fine blackspots have been pinpointed street by street using information obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

The top 10 places where city motorists are more likely to be ticketed can now be revealed.

Since parking fines were taken out of the hands of police in October 2004 the number of fines issued has quadrupled. Campaigners have accused the council of using its powers as a "stealth tax".

More than 120,000 fines have been dished out by wardens, but just 10,000 tickets were issued by police the year before they handed the role over to Cambridge City Council. Since then the authority has raked in a massive £3.6m - more than enough to cover the £2m to pay for 100 extra officers Chief Constable Julie Spence says she needs to tackle an influx of migrants since the EU expanded in 2004.

Now we have identified the streets where wardens have been firing on all cylinders. And you can find out what's happening with wardens in your street on Cambridge News online.

A total of 40,000 tickets were issued from February 2007 to January 2008. In the same period the previous year, 42,000 were doled out.More than 41,000 parking fines were slapped on cars in the previous year and 6,700 from November 2004 to January 2005.

Neil Herron, of Parking Appeals, a campaign helping people fight parking fines, has accused the council of revenue-raising and believes it has made no difference to traffic woes.

He said: "There won't be a difference in traffic flow in Cambridge after decriminalisation. The only difference will be that the money raised by police went to a central pot but the money made by the council goes to the council."
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that this has everything to do with revenue-raising. It is a stealth tax on motorists and has hit local businesses."

Cambridge City councillor Rob Dryden believes people are less likely to park illegally - but called for common sense from wardens.

He said: "I think that now people are not so willing to stop on double yellow lines to nip to the shop and it may have stopped people parking in disabled bays. But there must be common sense from wardens."

Those who have fallen foul of wardens include a circus, a coach carrying children to a pantomime, a disabled man's mobility scooter and a coach taking pensioners on a mayoral outing. Moscow State Circus manager Paul Archer was shocked when his lorry was delivering to Cambridge Corn Exchange, where the big show was performing.

And a parking ticket was slapped on a coach as the driver waited to collect primary school pupils after a pantomime.John Turnock, owner of Anglian Travel, based in Haddenham, had sent one of his coaches to help pick up 350 children from the Arts Theatre, but the driver received a ticket as he waited for them.

Emergency EDF electricians also fell foul of wardens. They returned to find tickets on their vans in Peas Hill - number nine in the top 10 - after they had fixed a major fault at the Arts Theatre.

Even a disabled man's mobility vehicle was ticketed while it was parked in a designated area after his permit was stolen.

Raphael Piran, 36, of Radegund Road, Cambridge is wheelchair bound. The disabled parking badge he kept stuck inside his windscreen was stolen and wardens gave him a ticket while parked outside the Arts Theatre - which was later thrown out on appeal last year.

And dozens of Cambridge pensioners nearly missed out on the Mayor's trip to the seaside - after one of the city council's own parking attendants slapped a ticket on their coach.Red-faced councillors on the trip later apologised for the blunder.

CCTV to dish out parking tickets

Minister Rosie Winterton is so far off the pace. Giving tickets to people two weeks AFTER an alleged contravention is not fairer Mrs. Winterton, it's outrageous. As for saying that it will improve safety ... for who? Those sitting watching CCTV harvesting cash and sticking the stamps on the parking fine envelopes?

The time has come to put an end to this outrageous stealth tax.


CCTV TO DISH OUT PARKING TICKETS
Fury over fines by post plan
By Adrian Butler
Adrian.Butler@Sundaymirror.Co.Uk
23/03/2008

Traffic spies watching CCTV screens will dish out parking tickets from next week - without drivers knowing.

Anyone pulling over for a couple of minutes could be caught but won't find out until the letter arrives.

Motorists' groups were in uproar last night over the new laws, the impact of which were revealed earlier this month by the Sunday Mirror's Judge Tread.

They say they will lead to confusion, with thousands of drivers being fined for pulling over on to yellow lines for just a few minutes.

Campaigner Neil Herron said: "You might be pulling over to make a phone call or drop someone off and two weeks later you'll get a fine.
You'll be able to appeal, but it's outrageous you'd have to go through that in the first place."
Patrolling wardens - renamed "civil enforcement officers" - will no longer have to put tickets on windscreens.
And the fines are up to £80, or £50 for less serious offences. For drivers in London the new penalties are £120 and £80. Mr Herron, whose firm parking appeals.co.uk is helping to launch a sat-nav recording system to aid appeals, added:
"Motorists are about to suffer a deluge of increased enforcement. Britain's parking system is rapidly becoming a lawless, unacceptable stealth tax."

Consumer group Which? said the new tickets will be hard to fight as drivers may have no idea they were to get one until it arrived so would not have the opportunity to gather evidence.
Councils can use cameras to spot offences where it is "too difficult or sensitive" for a warden to work.

The AA is particularly worried about wardens not having to put a ticket on a windscreen. A spokesman said:
"We believe it is crucial a ticket is completed before a vehicle moves off.
Enforcement should be about prohibiting obstructive parking, not about postal fines after the event."

But it's not all bad news - clamping will be used only for persistent offenders, and councils will have to spend proceeds from tickets on improving transport.

Transport Minister Rosie Winterton said the new rules were fairer and would improve safety.

Death knell sounds for Private Land Parking Firms with landmark ruling

Now political pressure must be applied to the DVLA to stop ALL private firms accessing the DVLA data base.

Judge quashes £300 parking fine...because it set out to ‘frighten and intimidate’ driver

By MARTIN DELGADO
Mail on Sunday
22nd March 2008

Car park operators could be forced to stop threatening motorists with huge penalty charges after a landmark court ruling.

In a decision that will be welcomed by many aggrieved drivers, a judge has ruled that the demands for hundreds of pounds in penalties which a parking company sent to one woman driver were illegal because they were too high.

The court was told they were intended to "frighten or intimidate" her rather than compensate the firm for any lost income.

The case is expected to have far-reaching implications for private parking firms.
Labour MP Alan Meale, who has campaigned on behalf of motorists, said: "This ruling gives hope that people who have had money taken from them wrongly by parking companies may be able to recover it."

And the woman's solicitor, Martin Lee, said: "In future, companies that charge these sorts of sums will have them struck out unless they can prove that they are a proper account of any financial loss.

"The courts have shown that unfairly high bank charges are a penalty charge and therefore unjustifiable. The same principle applies here."

In a ground-breaking decision, the judge quashed a series of £100 demands sent to Victoria Hetherington-Jakeman, who had allegedly left her car at a shopping centre for more than the permitted two hours.

She was sued by Excel Parking Services, which is run by a man once acquitted of demanding money with menaces from the owners of clamped cars and who is allowed electronic access to the Government's database of 38million motorists – despite being temporarily barred last year following scores of complaints about its behaviour.

Ms Hetherington-Jakeman, 60, was sued for failing to pay three £60 parking tickets which she did not even know she had been given.
Her visits to the Portland Retail Park near her home in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, took place between September and November 2006.

But no tickets were left on the windscreen of her Mercedes and she heard nothing from Excel until the following January when she was sent a bill for £300, followed by letters from bailiffs threatening to confiscate her property unless she paid up.

Excel had used a fixed camera to record her numberplate as she entered and left the site. It then passed the details to the DVLA, which sent back an email with her name and address.
Mr Lee told Mansfield County Court that the levy of £100 per offence was an "unlawful penalty clause" intended to "frighten or intimidate" and therefore unenforceable.
This argument was accepted by District Judge Wall, who ruled that the fines did not have to be paid.

Last night, Ms Hetherington-Jakeman, who is head of quality control at a printing firm, said she was relieved her 14-month battle was over.

"Excel's behaviour has been absolutely disgraceful throughout. When I tried to contact them – and the only way to do that was on a 50p-a-minute premium-rate phone line – I got no response. They said they couldn't discuss the matter.
"They couldn't even get the most basic details right. First, they said my car was black, then silver. It's white.

"They claimed the initial £60 parking tickets hadn't arrived because of a hold-up at the Royal Mail, though the Post Office said that wasn't true.
"It's been very stressful but at least we have got the judgment we wanted."

Excel, which manages a number of hospital, retail and station car parks, is run from an office in Sheffield by Simon Renshaw-Smith, 41, who is also director of a wheel-clamping firm called Captain Clampit Ltd.

In 1993 he was accused at Sheffield magistrates' court of demanding £145 with menaces from two drivers whose cars he had immobilised.

Asked last night about the case, Mr Renshaw-Smith said: "The accusations against me were dropped. I was acquitted."

Last July, Excel was finally removed from the "approved" list of organisations allowed electronic access to the DVLA's database.

It followed complaints from around the country and the formation of a 100-strong action group in Mansfield made up entirely of motorists who claimed they had been unfairly treated by Excel.

The move meant that Excel was forced to apply for personal data by post on a case-by-case basis.

Yet the ban was lifted only three months later. A DVLA spokesman said inspectors visited the firm and decided it was using the data "appropriately".

MP Mr Meale said he would demand an explanation of the decision from Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly.
Martin Bingley, a spokesman for the Mansfield action group, said: "Excel has an appalling reputation for failing to respond to appeals and for insisting they are right and the customer wrong."
Excel, which has now lost its contract to run the Portland car park, said it was "disappointed" by the court ruling in Ms Hetherington-Jakeman's favour and was considering an appeal.

Another Parking Appeals Victory ... this time Medway Council toppled

Medway Council are teetering on the brink ...
The reason why they cancelled the ticket is perfectly clear ... they didn't want this brought before an adjudicator or referred upwards to the High Court.

Parking Appeals has a message to every motorist who has received a parking ticket in Medway in the last 7 years ... drop us a line at enquiries@parkingappeals.co.uk and you may be in for a surprise.

Meanwhile, anyone with a current ticket ... drop us a line and we will show you exactly how to appeal successfully.
Parking Appeals' member Ian Holland's is set to become a local hero which is not a bad result for £9.99 for twelve month's membership.

We have been provided with some of the comments from a Medway Council spokesman attempting to defend the authority's approach to parking fines ... (before the appeal went in).

My comments are in red.

He said: "The council regularly checks its parking procedures with the Department for Transport and the National Parking Adjudication Service."
A series of questions and a Freedom of Information Request has been submitted.

"The wording on both the penalty charge notice and notice to owner is legal and accurate."
Well let's get a case to the adjudicator and test it. Anyone in Medway got a ticket pending?

"The use of the word 'offence' is a commonly used adjective that the majority of the public would understand."
It's a noun ... and the draftsmen of the legislation would not take kindly to councils 'assuming' what they meant and replacing words with ones they consider would be 'more easily understood.'

"The parking adjudicator suggests that the word 'contravention' and not 'offence' should be used on the notice to owner, but this is only a suggestion and this is not mandatory."
Schedule 6 of the 1991 Road Traffic Act is mandatory. Can't wait for the source of the statement from the parking adjudicator.

"The penalty charge notice therefore legally still stands, but the holder may still use our appeals process."
He did and the ticket was cancelled for one of the best excuses we have ever heard. Read it below ...

Motorist wins parking fine fight ...

• Victory over wording on notice could spark flood of appeals
by Hayley Robinson
hrobinson@thekmgroup.co.uk
Medway Messenger

A MOTORIST has won his battle against a parking fine because of incorrect wording.

Ian Hollands was issued with the ticket in Rochester High Street while carrying out security work at a jewellery shop on New Year's Eve.

But a Notice to Owner document, issued to motorists when they haven't paid their penalty charge within 28 days, describes the violation as an 'offence'.

Protest group parkingappeals.co.uk told Mr Hollands that under the decriminalised scheme brought in by the Road Traffic Act 1991, as no crime has occurred, the use of the word 'offence' rendered the penalty invalid.

As a result, hundreds of thousands of parking tickets issued to motorists could be challenged.

Medway Council has given another reason for their decision to cancel the ticket.

Its letter to Mr Hollands reads:
"It has been recorded that you had a conversation with the parking attendant at the time that the ticket was issued and the attendant noted that you were working in the High Street at the time."

Mr Hollands said:
"Like anyone, I'm pleased that I don't have to pay the fine but I'm disappointed Medway Council has not addressed the issue that the wrong wording is being used on their Notice to Owner letter."

Medway Council said the wording was legal and accurate and it is suggested, not mandatory, that the word 'contravention' and not 'offence' should be used on the notice to owner.

Nick (?) Herron, spokesman for the website, says the council is wrong.

He said:
"It is a mandatory requirement to use the word contravention instead of offence as in schedule six of the Road Traffic Act 1991."

Medway Messenger, 21 March 2008

2006 Fraud Act ... but only when it suits

The BBC reports today ...

More parents lie to get schools

Competition for places in top schools is intense Local councils in England say increasing numbers of parents have been caught trying to cheat to get places for their children at popular schools.
More ...

What is very interesting is the fact the Local Government Association is quoted as saying that "Parents who use false addresses are breaking the law under the Fraud Act 2006."

But how many councils have lied about aspects of parking enforcement? Rather than considering Misfeasance or Malfeasance in public office perhaps a quicker and cleaner route is a criminal complaint to the Police. After all, what's good enough for the LGA to use against parents, is good enough for motorists to use against councils and their officers.

Now, with a consideration for the local authorities on matters relating to parking enforcement, lets look at the 2006 Fraud Act:

2 Fraud by false representation
(1) A person is in breach of this section if he—
(a) dishonestly makes a false representation, and
(b) intends, by making the representation—
(i) to make a gain for himself or another, or
(ii) to cause loss to another or to expose another to a risk of loss.

(2) A representation is false if—
(a) it is untrue or misleading, and
(b) the person making it knows that it is, or might be, untrue or misleading.

(3) “Representation” means any representation as to fact or law, including a representation as to the state of mind of—
(a) the person making the representation, or
(b) any other person.

(4) A representation may be express or implied.

(5) For the purposes of this section a representation may be regarded as made if it (or anything implying it) is submitted in any form to any system or device designed to receive, convey or respond to communications (with or without human intervention).

3 Fraud by failing to disclose information
A person is in breach of this section if he—
(a) dishonestly fails to disclose to another person information which he is under a legal duty to disclose, and
(b) intends, by failing to disclose the information—
(i) to make a gain for himself or another, or
(ii) to cause loss to another or to expose another to a risk of loss.

4 Fraud by abuse of position
(1) A person is in breach of this section if he—
(a) occupies a position in which he is expected to safeguard, or not to act against, the financial interests of another person,
(b) dishonestly abuses that position, and
(c) intends, by means of the abuse of that position—
(i) to make a gain for himself or another, or
(ii) to cause loss to another or to expose another to a risk of loss.

(2) A person may be regarded as having abused his position even though his conduct consisted of an omission rather than an act.

Now just consider the activities of some councils (and council officers) in relation to parking enforcement:

• issuing Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) they knew did not comply with the law.
• continuing to enforce PCNs that they know to be non-compliant
• using paperwork they know to be non-compliant and continuing to enforce, and derive revenue, from such paperwork
• continuing to issue PCNs where signs and lines are unlawful
• how many have cancelled or 'no contested'

What do you think the Local Government Association's take will be on this?

If you want to ask them they can be contacted here

£120 parking fines for motorists while vandals, shoplifters and drunks just need to say they'll be good.

When will you reach tipping point?

Parking fines increased to £120 but vandals, shoplifters and drunks just need to say that they'll be good and their fines are waived. If ever evidence was needed that the motorist was simply the most convenient victim of this highly lucrative stealth tax then this is it.

Enforcement is easy. Detection is simple ...one electronic request to the DVLA. Then punishment should you wish to resist ... could be you'll lose your car.

... and don't forget that the 'independent' adjudicators, NPAS (and PATAS) are financially dependent on the parking enforcement 'industry' too. In the case of NPAS they receive 60p from EVERY ticket issued (outside of London). Do you class that as independent?

Motorists face £120 parking fines
By Stephen Adams
Daily Telegraph
19/03/2008
Motorists are facing a significant increase in the cost of parking fines under new laws giving councils the power to issue tickets of up to £120.
Higher fines will be issued to motorists who park on a double yellow line on important routes.
The laws, which come into force at the end of the month, enable local authorities, for the first time, to set different levels of fines for different parking offences.
In London, motorists face fines of up to £120 while outside the capital the maximum penalty will be £70. More

Now read this

Vandals can avoid a spot fine by saying they'll be good
Evening Standard
30th May 2007
Shoplifters, drunks and vandals will escape paying on-the-spot fines if they promise to behave for a few months, it emerged last night.
Thousands of yobs will be let off with "deferred" fixed-penalty notices each year.
Where once they would have been hauled into court, criminals will have their £80 fines suspended if they sign an Acceptable Behaviour Contract. More ...

If this does not make you realise that you have to stand up to be counted to prevent the escalation of this absurd dichotomy then there is no hope.

ParkingAppeals.co.uk is committed to ending the injustice and abuse motorists are facing in the name of what purports to be 'parking enforcement' which is now perceived by the majority as nothing more than a form of licensed highway robbery which makes Dick Turpin look like a pillar of virtue.

Parking Attendant offers to tear up a parking ticket for sex

... but Parking Appeals will only charge you £9.99 ... no extras!

This little story was reported in today's Sun.

Now we have had a few tickets from Westminster and never had such an offer. The usual mantra chanted by councils is that once a parking ticket is written out it cannot be cancelled by the Parking Attendant. Clearly this is not the case.

'I'll tear up your ticket for sex'
Chris Semple
The Sun
18th March 2008

A TRAFFIC warden told a shocked woman he’d rip up her parking ticket — if she performed a sex act on him.
He offered the vile “deal” after slapping the fine on Gemma Patten’s windscreen.
Distraught Gemma, 22, got in her VW Polo and locked all the doors.
She said: “I was disgusted. He’s clearly a sicko and shouldn’t be working in such a position of authority.”
More ...

The Sunday Mirror's Judge Tread takes Offence

Looks like Medway Council's parking woes are set to grow.

Legal expert Ollie Mishcon aka Judge Tread has also picked up on Medway Council's non-compliant Notice to Owner.

Where does that leave motorists who have paid?

Well, anyone who ticked the box and then lost an appeal should ask for their money back. However, this will be an even bigger embarrassment for the National Parking Adjudication Service whose adjudicators failed to pick up on this fundamental 'offensive' error (in over 970 appeals)*... and who have yet again been shown up to be crassly incompetent ... no offence intended.

If that is the case then you can ask NPAS for an out of time review.

To add to the NPAS embarrassment, at the Traffic Law Seminar in Leeds in July 2003 ( the minutes of which are on the DfT website) councils were told by the National Parking Adjudication Service (the adjudication body to deal with appeals after a council has rejected an appeal against a Notice to Owner) to 'mind their language.'

Parking matters are no longer 'offences' ... they are contraventions. 'A person is no longer guilty of an offence.'

Well, perhaps the adjudicators should have been told as well 'cos it looks like quite a few non-compliant notices have slipped through somebody's fingers.

Parking Appeals is the website campaigning for the rights of beleaguered motorist ... and exposing those councils who think that they are above the law.

Remember, NPAS receives 60p from EVERY PCN issued in the country, and that is their only source of funding.

* Medway NPAS Appeals
2000-2001 = 118
2001-2002 = 204
2002-2003 = 190
2003 = 176
2004 = 95
2005 = 191
Total 974

Medway Council Parking Blunder

This is another paperwork blunder by a local authority.

On the left is a Notice to Owner issued by Medway Council. This is the document that you get after 28 days if you do not pay (or receive) a Penalty Charge Notice (Parking Ticket).

The Notice to Owner has to be correctly worded in order to comply with the legal requirements of the 1991 Road Traffic Act.

In this instance Medway Council have made a rather large blunder meaning that everyone who has received such a document can immediately ask for the Penalty Charge Notice to be cancelled.

Parking Appeals is a campaigning website that will not only tell you exactly why the Notice to Owner is unlawful ... and how to appeal it, but will also expose any local authority which

believes it is above the law.

It only costs £9.99 a year to support what we do. Simply click on the Parking Appeals logo below to become a member (and get an extra month free from this link).

If you then want to then find out why this Notice to Owner is non-compliant and therefore unlawful, once you are a member simply go to
"Had a Ticket"
then to
"Penalty Charge Notice" and it will all become clear when you check out the 'Common Paperwork Mistakes' section.

I am sure that you will then say how on earth could they get something so simple so wrong?

This is typical of many local authorities around the country and once you are a member of Parking Appeals you will have access to all this information. Can you afford not to join?

More Double standards in Blackburn ... park anywhere if you are the Mayor

Mayor's car given bus stop parking space
By Tom Moseley

THE Mayor's official car has been given a parking space at a bus stop, prompting fury at council bosses' 'double standards'.
The 'scandalous and arrogant' decision has been slammed by critics who say the mayor's black BMW should be treated the same as everyone else.
And a bus operator accused the council of setting a bad example and inconveniencing passengers.

Parking wardens have been told not to issue tickets when the mayor's car is left in the 'space' at the bus stop in Exchange Street, next to Blackburn Town Hall.

But members of the public have not enjoyed the same treatment, with a number of complaints in recent months about 'over zealous' parking wardens.
Attendants have given fixed penalty notices to, among others, a security van as it picked up cash from a bank in the town centre and a resident who waited for one minute while picking his wife outside the Postal Order in Darwen Street.

Parking ticket champion Barrie Segal, who founded the website www.appealnow.com, said: "If you or I parked there we would get a ticket.
"This is scandalous, and typical of the arrogance of councils."

Parking campaigner Neil Herron, who has successfully challenged parking tickets across the country, said: "If bus stop regulations are not being enforced in this case, what sort of message does that send out to the rest of the borough?"

David Wilson, the commercial development director of Lancashire United, said that cars parking in bus stops created "huge problems".
He said: "Bus drivers need to be able to use bus stops properly and get to the pavement to make sure that passengers have proper access.
"It is not very good at all if the mayor is parking in a bus stop and we will certainly be raising it with the council."

The parking space at the bus stop was created after a £900,000 revamp of the area around the town hall.
A proper space was created, but that was found to obscure the view of pedestrians crossing a nearby zebra crossing.
The bus stop will be used temporarily while a review is undertaken to find a permanent parking space.

Opposition council leader Kate Hollern said: "Parking in a town centre bus stop sets a very bad example.
"Just a few weeks ago I was given a parking ticket because I parked partially in a bus stop. I know I shouldn't have done it, and I deserved the ticket, but it should be one rule for all.
"Whoever drew up the plans for mayor to park at the end of a bus lane is crazy."

Trader Krish Singh, of interiors store Milano's in Blackburn, accused the council of double standards.
Mr Singh said: "The wardens are very quick to issue tickets to our customers, as well as us, but not so quick to issue to the people in the town hall. It's clearly a case of do as we say, not as we do."

Last month council bosses were left red-faced after they forgot to replace the tax disc on the mayor's car.
The car, which has a registration CB1, is used on official visits by the Mayor of Blackburn with Darwen, Coun Maureen McGarvey.

Council leader Colin Rigby said: "Concerns were raised about the safety of pedestrians who may not be seen by motorists as they approached the zebra crossing.
"A safety audit will be undertaken, which could lead to a more official looking car park space."

Motorists receiving a parking fine now on a par with shoplifters

Has this country finally gone mad?

They are saying that a shoplifter should be treated in the same way as a motorist who has outstayed his welcome at a parking meter.

The regime of on-the-spot fines typically given to shoplifters who steal goods under the value of £200 will continue. They have to pay £80, equivalent to some parking fines.

What sort of message does this send out to petty criminals?

As for motorists, you are an easy target guys and easily caught ... because you can be identified by your vehicle registration number. Plus, you are more likely to pay, and if you don't you have a vehicle which can be taken in lieu of the fine.

Are you happy that the status of a motorist falling foul of a parking restriction in Brown's Britian is equivalent to a shoplifter?

The full story can be read in today's Daily Mail here

The Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards 2008 ... the Dorchester

Breakfast meeting with the lawyers at the Dorchester to discuss the pending Judicial Review of a recent NPAS decision, which is anticipated will not only expose the reality that the National Parking Adjudication Service is not 'independent' from the local authorities that they receive 60p per ticket from but will challenge the validity of every single Controlled Parking Zone in the country.

On the CPZ issue the Department for Transport have already admitted that there is a problem which could lead to a valid challenge to every CPZ in the country. They were aware of the problem some time ago and may have to redraft the legislation to correct the error.

We will be making all the legal arguments available to Parking Appeals members shortly including the report from expert witness Richard Bentley which the Department for Transport not only had sight of, but agreed with.

Meanwhile, the F1 NED vehicle was parked outside in a 'pay by text bay' outside the Dorchester and within minutes the Westminster Parking Attendants had turned up.
"You have not paid Sir."

He was very polite and courteous. I pointed out that the sign was illegal and I was not going to hand over credit card details to any telephone number printed on a plastic sign held up with cable ties.

He disappeared. I went in for the meeting. Minutes later two Parking Attendants appeared and were captured on film by a photographer who had been awaiting the arrival of the great and the good for the lavish British Parkin Awards ceremony. (Don't forget to ask your council how many representatives they sent, and ask for full disclosure of all expenses).

The Parking Attendant can clearly be seen on his radio. Looks like the instruction came back not to issue. Are Westminster frightened of us challenging their pay by text operation?

Meeting over and delegates starting to arrive ... so we got our Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards ready. The delegates, including the representatives from councils and the enforcement industry proved somewhat camera shy.


We waited and waited.

The 'industry' that is so keen to take photographs of motorists committing contraventions and so keen on rolling out CCTV enforcement to monitor your every move ... not for criminal activity as CCTV was intended, but for monitoring of civil infringements for revenue generation.

What a dilemma that would be ... do you zoom in on the mugger or the parking contravention?

One is easily traceable and will get a fine and the other will take a little more effort and involve cost to the public purse and if caught, will be given a fine less than the motorist.

Are you surprised that the motorist gets the attention?

We waited to spot a representative from NCP Services and Richmond and Islington Councils to give them their Dick Turpin Awards, but to no avail.


We re-positioned F1 NED so that they couldn't miss us but they were still reluctant to be photographed and dived into the venue. Many however, were already in the Dorchester having stayed over in their 'from £234.00 per night' rooms.

By now we were attracting attention from curious HackneyBlack Cab drivers.

Once we explained that the back-slapping British Parking Awards were taking place the cabbies got on the radio to tell their colleagues not to pick up from the Dorchester later that afternoon when the great and the good from the Parking Industry would be leaving. They also asked if they could e-mail us their horror stories ... so come on all you cabbies across the country, let us know how you have been plagued by Parking Attendants and CCTV.

The Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards 2008

The Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards 2008

This annual event is being held at 11am outside the Dorchester Hotel in London on Friday 8th March.

It is being sponsored by ParkingAppeals.co.uk the organisation that exposes unlawful activity by local authorities and the parking enforcement contractors and assist motorists with their parking appeals.

ParkingAppeals.co.uk annual "Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards 2008" which, coincidentally happen on the same day as the British Parking Awards organised by the Parking Review has attracted many nominations from the length and breadth of the land.

Competition was fierce ...

This year's winners are:

The Most Inventive Council

This award goes to the council that has come up with the best way to increase their revenue. This year's winner is Islington Council who stooped to a new low to rake in parking fines.
When Philip Langsdale parked his car outside his home he knew from experience ther were no restrictions.
But when the 51-year-old returned to his motor in Highbury, north London, he was astonished to find yellow lines had been painted underneath - and a parking ticket had been slapped on the windscreen.
More ...

The Least Honest Parking Attendant of the Year Award

This goes to former terrorist Mustapha Boutarfa who forgot to tell his employer NCP Services (and they never checked) that he had been to prison for his involvement in the Paris Metro bombings. He was only rumbled after three years! As he may not be available to collect his award it will be presented to Richmond Council on his behalf as they profited to the tune of £150,000 from his activities ... and then refused to refund any of the money giving the best excuse ever:

No refunds because ... being a terrorist ... "does not constitute grounds for cancellation of penalty charge notices issued by him ... the parking regulations do not allow this."
Parveen Bindra, Legal Services Department, Richmond Council" More ...


Enforcement Contractor of the Year Award
This award goes to NCP Services who cancelled Christmas bonuses for its staff in Brighton 'for fear of causing offence to non-Christian employees.


Spokesman Tim Cowen said:
"We employ people from more than 100 countries and feel it is perhaps no longer appropriate just to recognise Christmas celebrations."
He also said it could be seen as unacceptable for a transport firm to hold alcohol-fuelled parties. More ...

Speaking of alcohol fuelled parties, 'Moulin Mule' cocktails and dancing girls, the British Parking Awards are being held at the Dorchester Hotel at 11.30am tomorrow shortly after our awards where NCP Services are shortlisted for a number of awards ... including the Training Award...
"Our future in their hands: the Btec Team Leader Programme."
Click here to see how NCP trained their Parking Attendants in one northern city, and how Mr. Cowen, spokesman at the time for NCP before he became spokesman for NCP Services explained their actions.

To view the British Parking Awards list click here

British Parking Awards ... and the Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards

At 11.30am tomorrow, 7th March 2008, the British Parking 'INDUSTRY' is holding an annual awards dinner. We can now see what has become the most lucrative of all local authorities' operations, decriminalised parking, engaging in back-slapping and feasting at the trough.

Local authority employed civil servants sharing the spoils with private enforcement contractors and bailiffs at a banquet with flowing champagne and dancing girls ... and you, the motorist and council tax payer, are paying for this lavish extravagance.

Are you comfortable with your council engaging in such activities?

Are you comfortable that parking enforcement is fair, transparent and just ... or are you of the opinion that it is a licensed money making 'industry' for all concerned?

Keep these images in mind next time you are issued with a

Penalty Charge Notice and cannot understand why the council haven't exercised common sense or discretion, or why your paperwork isn't correct or your representations mysteriously 'go missing.'

Click here to see exactly who is up for an award and why.

...and we will shortly be publishing the Parking Appeals Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards ...

Will your council be a recipient?

On 31st March 2008 the new Traffic Management Act comes into force with new powers for Parking Attendants (Civil Enforcement Officers) who can serve Penalty Charge Notices by post and CCTV enforcement can be rolled out across the country.

If you thought things were bad, next month they are set to get a lot, lot worse.

British Parking Awards knees up ... Littlejohn at his best

And the Lovely Rita Award goes to ...

4th March 2008

Richard Littlejohn

Daily Mail

This week's glittering edition of You Couldn't Make It Up comes live from London's Dorchester Hotel, home of the 2008 British Parking Awards.

Initially, I assumed it was a spoof - especially when I discovered that it was to be hosted by the comedienne Meera Syal, of Goodness Gracious Me fame.
But, no. It's kosher. Even my fevered imagination couldn't come up with this one.
On Friday, 500 assorted traffic wardens, wheel-clampers and multi-storey merchants will assemble for the "the foremost event in the UK parking calendar".


The 2008 British Parking Awards:

A gathering of 500 of the most hated people in Britain

They'll be treated to a champagne reception, complete with can-can dancers, before the gongs are dished out.

Categories include Off Street Parking Team Of The Year; Joined Up Thinking: The Innovation Award; and Parking Person Of The Year.

The £99-a-head bash is sponsored by, among others, the debt collection agency Equita; NCP; and The Enforcer, described as "a quarterly magazine dedicated to the growing sector that enforces regulations, issues penalties and recovers debts".
It's appropriate that the parking industry's house journal takes its name from a Dirty Harry movie.
I wonder if the journalists who produce it - and probably went into the trade dreaming of Woodward and Bernstein - ever thought their careers would turn out like this. I'd rather sell the Big Issue outside King's Cross station.

Friday's ceremony will see 500 of the most hated people in Britain gathered together in one place for an orgy of self-congratulation over the misery they inflict upon others.

More ...

One company which wasn't on the official list of invites was Parking Appeals Ltd.

It could possibly be that our ticket got lost in the post ... along with thousands of Notice to Owners, Charge Certificates and other paperwork.

Perhaps we'll have our own Dick Turpin Highway Robbery Awards ... any nominations and categories?

Seal your suggestions in an envelope and if you cannot stick it on the car just put it in the post.