· Council Connect at the Guildhall is moving to a new location on Mon 21st May 2012. For all enquiries and payments, please visit The Bath One Stop Shop, 3-4 Manvers Street, Bath BA1 1JQ.
Penalty Charge Notices will be in accordance will the following levels:
Charges for Lower level contraventions
| Charge |
Cost |
| Lower level penalty charge |
£50 |
| Lower level penalty charge (paid early) |
£25 |
| Lower level penalty charge paid after service of charge certificate |
£75 |
Charges for Higher level contraventions
| Charge |
Cost |
| Higher level penalty charge |
£75 |
| Higher level penalty charge (paid early) |
£35 |
|
Higher level penalty charge paid after service of charge certificate |
£105 |
Detail of the contravention codes used in respect of a lower/higher charges can be found in the related documents at the top of the page.
Enforcement Policy
- The Council’s PCN enforcement policy does not follow a ‘one size fits all’ approach and each case is carefully considered on its merits.
- There are three stages to be followed in the enforcement process. ‘Challenge’ ‘Representation’ and ‘Appeal’
Challenges
- A ‘challenge’ to a PCN is an initial challenge or informal representation made after the issue of a PCN, but before a Notice to Owner (NTO) is issued. (NTOs are normally issued 28 days after the date of the PCN if payment has not been made).
- There is no legislative requirement on Councils to respond to challenges but in accordance with good practice guidelines this Council has a policy of considering all challenges.
What to do if your challenge is rejected
- If your challenge is rejected we will usually reinstate your entitlement to the discounted payment.
- If we are unable to agree that the PCN should be cancelled and you do not accept the Council’s decision you should not make payment and wait for the NTO to be issued.
- You cannot make payment to secure the discounted payment and continue to challenge the PCN. If payment is made the matter is considered closed.
- The NTO will ask for payment of the PCN at the original amount or provide you with the option of making further representations. The grounds on which you can make representations are dictated by legislation and are clearly set out in the notice.
Representations
- A representation is the formal representation against the PCN in response to an NTO.
- The NTO will always be served on the person identified by the DVLA as being the registered keeper/owner of the vehicle even it that person was not the driver.
- The Council must consider a formal representation and if unable to agree that the PCN should be cancelled, issue a notice of rejection and detail of how to make an appeal to an independent adjudicator at the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
- In the absence of exceptional circumstances or other compelling reason the discounted payment will not be reinstated.
Appeals
- You will be provided with an appeal form and full detail of how to proceed.
- You must appeal directly to the Tribunal not the Council.
- The Council will be notified of your appeal by the Tribunal and will respond and send you a copy of its evidence.
- An independent adjudicator will be appointed to review all of the evidence and you will be offered the option of appearing before the adjudicator in person, having a telephone hearing or having your appeal considered in writing.
- The adjudicator’s decision is final and binding on both parties.
- There is no charge for this service. Costs will only be awarded if the adjudicator considers that either side’s actions in contesting the appeal have been frivolous or vexatious.
Mitigating Circumstances
- The Council has a duty to enforce parking regulations and penalty charges incurred for contravening them.
- Against this, fairness dictates that it should consider mitigating circumstances brought to its attention.
- Strict audit accountability procedures however require us to seek corroboration if mitigating circumstances are put forward as an argument that a legitimately issued PCN should be cancelled.
What to do if you have been issued with a PCN that you believe to be unfair
- If you do not wish to pay the PCN because you believe that it was issued unfairly or mitigating circumstances should be considered you should write to the address provided on the rear of the PCN as soon as possible.
- Where applicable please provide any documentary evidence or other information that you believe will help us to fully consider your challenge.
- We will consider all of the circumstances described and write to you with a decision.
- If we believe that further information is required before making a decision we will ask you to provide this.
- Provided we receive your challenge within the 14 day discounted period as mentioned on the rear of the PCN your entitlement to the discounted payment will be protected whilst we consider your challenge.
- Do not allow your feelings of injustice or arguments about the validity of a PCN to cause you to ignore it, it will not go away. If the PCN remains unpaid and there is no response to enforcement notices issued the charge is increased by 50%.
- If the charge still remains unpaid the Council has no alternative other than to apply for a warrant to recover the debt which is then subject to recovery action by bailiffs.
- Substantial debt recovery costs can be incurred.
For further information on contravention codes and our enforcement policy, please access the document in the top right of the page under 'related documents'.
This information should however only be read as a general insight into the Council's approach to enforcement.
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