Parking Ticket News from AppealNow.com, Unfair Parking Tickets, Parking tickets, parking fines, unfair parking fine,after dinner speaking, after dinner speaking, clamping charge appeal

The 27-year old, whose heart stopped twice when he injured in Afghanistan, has now had more than £800 in parking fines for leaving his car in disabled bays.

And last month he was forced to hand over the money when a council bailiff arrived at his home threatening to take away his belongings if he didn't pay up.

To add insult to injury Nottinghamshire County Council told him he was "young and may get better" when he first applied for a "blue badge".

"What do they expect – my leg to grow back,?" He said, " I told them they'd didn't quite understand the situation and it was unlikely my leg would grow back."

His right leg was amputated below the knee after he was caught up in an explosion in Helmand Province in 2008.

He has served two tours in Iraq with 2nd Battalion, the Yorkshire Regiment prior to deploying to Afghanistan.

He was in a snatch Land Rover on a patrol around Gereshk when an explosion flipped it onto its side, catapulting him into a minefield.

He ordered his comrades not to rescue him until it was safe, so had to spend two hours in the minefield bleeding profusely while bomb disposal experts cut a path to reach him.

He then "died" twice when his heart stopped on the helicopter taking him to Camp Bastion and on the operating table, but he was revived each time.

When he returned to his home in Coddington near Newark, Notts, he applied to the county council for a blue disabled parking badge,

But to his astonishment his claim was turned down – as were two further applications.

UPDATE: According to The Council they have no record of the aplication(s) but have now issued a parking permit which will be delivered to him this evening.

Hampshire County Council workmen who were painting white lines on a road left a gap for a dead badger because they said it was not their responsibility to move it.

The animal had been killed about a week or so before on the A338 near Downton, on the Hampshire-Wiltshire border.

The County Council said the workers did what they thought "was best" because it is the district council's job to remove carcasses.

CAMDEN COUNCIL GUILTY OF PREJUDICING MOTORISTS AT PATAS PARKING TICKET APPEALS!!

Moving Traffic Signs Unenforceable - Millions of Pounds illegally collected by Councils.

Lambeth council have 98 staff under investigation for "breach of trust" in relation to allegations that council staff in charge of deciciding the outcome of parking appeas have deled fines for friends and family.

Crooked council workers have avoided heavy fines by letting themselves off parking tickets, a town hall whistleblower has claimed.

A member of staff at Lambeth Council exposed the actions of an unknown number of workers from the town hall’s parking monitoring team who have allegedly been cancelling their own penalty charge notices(PCNs).

The corrupt practice within the team that is supposed to oversee the parking fine appeals process allegedly took place up to April this year, but only emerged in a whistleblowing report published last week by the town hall.

Other allegations against staff included misuse of emergency parking badges, which employees had been using outside their own homes or when out shopping.

An urgent review of all yellow box junctions in Ealing is underway and some motorists caught at an incorrectly marked junction in Greenford are being offered refunds.

An independan review has been order by which will look at whether all junctions are marked out correctly, and the Department for Transport will also be asked to work with the council.

Councillor Mahfouz said:

“Nobody is denying that we need yellow boxes to keep traffic moving, but many problems have come to light over recent years. For months residents have been telling me how concerned they are about this issue. Motorists no longer have any confidence in these yellow boxes, which is why my first decision as cabinet member was to launch a review.

“In April there was yet another case where there was a technical problem with a yellow box junction in Greenford. Although enforcement was suspended while the problem was resolved, this can’t go on. I hope we can now draw a double yellow line under this issue and start afresh.

“I have been assured that all junctions now meet the guidance, but if the review reveals any problems at all, enforcement will be immediately suspended while any issues are urgently addressed. I have also been told processes have been improved to prevent problems from reoccurring, but if there are any problems in the future officers will be held to account if mistakes are made.”

The council will now be cancelling any unpaid tickets from the Otter Road/Greenford Road yellow box junction issued for offences before 30 April – the date the council suspended enforcement at the junction. The council will also refund anyone who received a ticket at that junction, but paid it after 30 April.

A local resident has been in touch with us to say how delighted he is to hear this news. His wife was photographed at the junction and they were in the process of appealing.

He says guidelines state that the council have to consult the police before installing a junction with cameras, but they discovered (through a freedom of information request) that this hadn't been done. He describes the announcement as a 'comprehensive victory' for drivers all round.

The council has set up a special email address for anybody who thinks that they may be entitled to a refund - OtterRoadRefunds@ealing.gov.uk or alternatively customers can phone 020 8825 6677.

DICK TURPIN RIDES AGAIN AS CAMDEN COUNCIL SNATCH £134,000 in EASTER PARKING FINES!

Modern day Dick Turpin, Camden Council in North London have had to agreed to repay £134,000 parking fines which they issued to drivers for parking on single yellow lines on Good Friday and Easter Monday.

It appears at the last minute they announced on their website that they would enforce single yellow lines on Good Friday and Easter Monday. In previous years they had not enforced single yellow lines on those days.

What is scandalous is that the only warning that civil enforcement officers would be eforcing single yellow lines was a small notice on the council's website announcing that normal yellow line restrictions would apply for the apply for the Easter holidays.

Civil enforcement officers issued a mind boggling 1,119 PCNs totalling £134,280!!

The Daily Telegraph quotes me as saying "This is like Dick Turpin being caught with his hands down the motorists' pocket.

It is disgraceful that the council, one of the largest in the country, could stoop to that sort of activity announcing it surreptitiously on the internet and sending out its scavengers to catch unsuspecting motorists."

Barrie's Comment: Frankly this astonish mess requires a full and transparent enquiry and if heads need to roll so be it. It beggars belief that anyone could have been so stupid as to have set this up in this way.

Amongst the victims of this highway robbery was a University College London Hospitals doctor, who was ticketed as whilst he was working d in the A&E department .

According to the council motorists who paid their fines by credit or debit card will have the money automatically refunded to their account.
Others who paid by cheque or cash will have apply for their money back .

Here is what Sam Monck, assistant director Public Realm and Sustainability (What on earth does that mean?) at Camden Council, said: "Our traffic orders, relating to single yellow lines, make it clear that we can issue tickets over the bank holiday weekends.
However in recent years, Camden has on a discretionary basis taken the decision as a gesture of goodwill not to issue parking tickets to cars parked on single yellow lines on Good Friday and Bank Holiday Monday."

He went on to say: "Over the Easter period this year, we did enforce parking regulations and displayed this information on our website, but realise that many motorists may have been confused by the inconsistency." - ( Talk about the glaringly ovbvious!)
Given the history of non-enforcement we have taken the decision to cancel or refund any parking tickets issued on Good Friday and Easter Monday."

Andrew Marshall, the council's Conservative deputy leader, said: "Camden Council got it wrong in terms of enforcing single yellow lines on Easter bank holidays. Camden Council will now communicate clearly in the run-up to the next bank holiday that we are NOT enforcing single yellow lines."

Note: Camden Council has promised that in future, drivers will be able to park on single yellows on bank holidays.

SWEARING UNCIVIL ENFORCEMENT OFFICER SUSPENDED BY NSL AFTER BEING CAUGHT SWEARING ON FILM!

A swearing UEO (Uncivil Enforcement Officer) was suspnded by NSL after being caught on camera sweaing at a motorist. The Westminster council CEO is caught shouting at Warren Djangoly and making obscene comments about his wife during the incident New Cavendish Street in London's West End.The film which was posted on Youtube is incredibly gaphic - the link is here but do watch out the language is disgraceful and vile!. ***

Tim Cowen the NSL spokesman Tim Cowen said the warden’s language was “shocking” and an investigation had been launched.

Mr. Cowen added: “The civil enforcement officer in question has been removed from the Westminster operation and suspended while that investigation takes place.

“Behaviour like this is not acceptable and would usually result in dismissal if the case is proven.”

Barrie says: "Mr. Cowen - it's proved because it's on camera. Why is this man still working for you? This surely rates instant dismissal."

I wonder if readers have had similar problems with civil enforcement officers. Have you ever received a penalty charge notice in these circumatances?

WESTMINSTER COUNCIL HAVE STARTED ISSUING A MASSIVE NUMBER OF CCTV ISSUED PENALTY CHARGE NOTICES.

In an unprecendented move Westminster Council have started issuing tons of CCTV issued Penalty Charge Notices.

Given that the Department for Transport only recommends that CCTV be used to issue PCNs if it is not practical for CEOs to issue them Westminster will need to justify this action.

In a decision at the London Parking Adjudicator adjudicator Carl Teper told the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea to cancel a parking ticket on Saturday 26th December 2009 and refund the clamping charge.

Alexey Andreev and his wife Elena had driven to Onslow Gardens in Kensington the day after Christmas (26th December 2009) and found a sign on the pay and display meter stating: “Free parking on public and bank holidays.”

The couples car was clamped for failing to pay at a parking meter by that heartless bunch at Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea council.

At the adjudication hearing adjudicator Carl Teper said" The authority argued that whenever Boxing Day falls on Saturday the bank holiday is on the following Monday instead.

The appellant's case is he understood the sign to mean he could park freely on Boxing Day, Saturday 26 December, 2009.

I find the words on the machine are sufficiently ambiguous to confuse a motorist when parking on a Boxing Day that falls on a Saturday as to whether charges are required.

If the authority wishes to enforce charges on Boxing Day when it falls on a Saturday, the machine should clearly state so."

Mealy mouthed Kensington & Chelsea said “We do not agree with the adjudicator's findings but will abide by his decision and consider if changes should be made in the future." [Barrie's Note: What do they mean if changes should be made? Of course they should. Councils have a legal responsibility to act fairly and they MUST changeall their signs. They should also refund all the PPCNs which were paid in similar circumstances. If you got a PCN in these circumstances write to the council demanding your money back!]

For the full story by David Williams, Motoring Correspondent of the Evening Standard click on Boxing Day Parking Ticket Farce!

ILLEGAL CAMERAS MAKE MORE THAN 5,000 MANCHESTER BUS LANE TICKETS UNENFORCEABLE AND AVAILABLE FOR REFUNDS.

More than 5,000 bus lane fines sent to motorists for driving in bus lanes in Greater Manchester are ellegal.

The city council has admitted that some the camers it used to enforce the bus lane did not have the proper certification after 24 December 2008.

The city council had been examining fines after more than 18,000 penalties which were paid between October 2006 and May 2007 were found to be illegal last year.

Any motorists who are affected by these new bus lane fines and the earlier fines should contact the council about a refund.

Email: parking@manchester.gov.uk

Telephone: General enquires: 0161 234 4111; Bus Lane enquires: 0161 954 9004

Fax: 0161 234 4035
Street Managment and Parking services, PO box 585, Albert Square, Manchester, M60 3NZ

NORTHERN IRELAND PARKING ATTENDANTS COST DOUBLE THE AMOUNT OF THE FINES RAISED!

Figures obtained by SDLP assembly member John Dallat for last year show that the Department for Regional Development paid more than £8m to a private company called NSL to run the parking enforcement service.

However in the same period it recived more than £4m in fines and car parking charges.

Mr. Dallat said the expense of the scheme had been increasing and that it must now be "controlled".

"This appears to be an excessive amount of money and over the past two years the cost of this scheme has increased by 20%," he said.

"Clearly the expense of this scheme needs to be controlled otherwise it become an albatross around the neck of the Department of Regional Development which is already experiencing unprecedented financial strain."

NSL said "Since the NSL contract commenced in 2006, surveys have shown that illegal parking has reduced by up to 65% in town centres and 25% on main routes into Belfast. Reduced illegal parking reduces congestion, improves safety and makes it easier to find a parking space in town centres."

Joe McCann a car rental driver has lost his job and been fined for hitting a parking attendant on the head during a row in Edinburgh.

The BBC reports that Mr. McCann who worked for Hertz was moving cars outside his place of work when parking attendant Darren Sharp ticked two cars which were on yellow lines.

Mr. McCann at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, admittedat hitting Mr Sharp on 22 August 2009 during a row about the tickets on 22 August 2009.

[Barrie's comments: This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable. There is no justification whatsover. Any conversation with a parking arrendant or civil enforcement officer should always be conducted in a calm way. If you think or suspect that you will not act calmly then don't have any conversation. Just go home and write your appeal. It's the safe and sensible way.]

Councils in Scotland may increase parking ticket charge from £60 to £80 or even £100.

Councils in Scotland may soon have power to increase their parking tickets from the current £60. Watch this space.d that not only do councils issue parking tickets to motorists they also them against their own vehicles.

Councils issue themselves parking tickets and then "sue" themselves

I discovered that not only do councils issue parking tickets to motorists they also them against their own vehicles.

Astonishingly councils are often so determined to get their money that they pursue the cases against themselves that they appeal to the Parking Adjudicator.

But the winner of the Craziest Parking Ticket Award this year must be Islington Council. In an Alice in Wonderland scenario Islington Council (Case number 2070232277) appealed to the Parking Adjudicator between June and September 2007.

In this case Islington Council had not only issued a parking ticket to itself, but then chased itself all the way to the Parking Adjudicator and then asked for costs against itself! (The Alice in Wonderland scene cntinues because to ask for costs the council must believe that it acted wholly unreasonably or vexatiously against itself!) For more click on Isligton Council's crazy Parking Ticket Mess ->

The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea lose £640,000 on towing and clamping vehicles.

According to the Daily Express The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea lose £640,000 on towing and clamping vehicles. This is a really astonishing revelation and councilors need to justify this action.

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Watch this space for all the latest parking ticket news brought to you by Barrie Segal. On this page you will find the latest stories and news about parking tickets isuued by council and the continual scourge of the penalty charge notice.

Councils in Scotland may increase parking ticket charge from £60 to £80 or even £100.

Councils issue themselves parking tickets and then "sue" themselves

The Fraud Fraud Probe at Westminster Council has been dropped.