Parking ticket in Bromley, advice please?

[dullwitch]

As if taking my son to a party at Gambados isn't enough punishment, I also got a parking ticket today. :'(

The car park was full, so I had to park on the road. Managed to find a space on a single yellow line (where everyone else had also parked) I looked around for any little yellow signs that one usually finds by the road, and couldn't find any.

But to be honest, I assumed that it was absolutely fine to park on a single yellow line on Sundays.

Has anyone else had a ticket on Copers Cope Road? And did they manage to appeal it?

To say I'm furious is an understatement. Fair enough if there had been clear signs, I would except it - I wouldn't like it, but I'd except it -but there weren't.

Any advice please Xx

[PeckhamRose]

If the signs were not there, you have a case. Go back and take photos of the street. Have them ready for the court case...

[legalbeagle]

I have challenged parking tickets before and succeeded so its worth a go. You have to appeal within a certain time so read the back of the ticket carefully so you don't fall foul of any deadline, then just follow the appeal procedure on the back of the ticket, explaining about the lack of clear signs. You might just get lucky!

[dullwitch]

Thanks. I will appeal it. But I don't think I'll have much luck. I've just read this from the bromley website

"Single yellow lines indicate that a waiting restriction is in force. The times of restriction differ depending on the location. It is important to read the restriction times on the small yellow plates in the immediate vicinity. However, in Controlled Parking Zones there are normally no individual small plates and the restriction times are shown on large signs at the entry to the zone."

That's all very well, but the only people who know this, will be the people who've looked it up after getting a ticket. What's the point of that?

[intexasatthe moment]

Same applies in parts of Peckham ,eg Bellenden Rd .

They just have signs to indicate that you are entering a zone ,but if you don't know about them it's easy to assume that single yellow ok after 1.30 on a sat.

[ianr]

TSRGD 2002 paragraph 4 (Interpretation - general) http://www.opsi.gov.uk/SI/si2002/20023113.htm seems to include a definition of a Controlled Parking Zone and the various ways in which it can be signed. The diagrams themselves are in a schedule at the end.

[skidmarks]

It?s a difficult one this. You either have large signs at the entrance of the controlled zone or hundreds and hundreds of individual sign plates for each single yellow line. It is down to cost and limiting the amount of street clutter.

[dullwitch]

skidmarks Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It’s a difficult one this. You either have large

> signs at the entrance of the controlled zone or

> hundreds and hundreds of individual sign plates

> for each single yellow line. It is down to cost

> and limiting the amount of street clutter.

But if they have just one sign at the end of the road, then surely that's just not enough? Especially when it's such unusual timings and such a long road too. It's seems a little deceitful in my opinion.

Maybe that's the very point of it... I worked out that they must have made at the least ?2500 yesterday, as the road was packed with cars on yellow lines

[antedel1]

This is a very interesting case - we also got a fine there yesterday and so did all the people parked ahead and behind us. We got to the inspector just as he was writing it and he said he couldn't stop it now that it started. I called the council today and they went on about the sign being at the beginning of the road and it being driver's duty to search for it. Whereas I stated that it is the council's ethical responsibility to ensure that any rules (particularly ones that seem to be different to the average - ie it's not alright to park on single yellow lines on a Sunday in this strip) ought to be clear. I do believe that the council has a duty of care to fully inform and make EASILY accessible information that we need to know. Their excuse is tantamount to "it's in the fine print and you ought to read the fine print". I think that is unethical for a government agent to operate under the guise of fine print. Banks are not allowed to get away with it - especially when you're asking people for money. Governments should definitely not be allowed to generate revenue under the guise of fine print as that is unethical! They should be completely transparent in their dealings. Their job is to HELP the community that is keeping them in a job by paying our taxes - not operating a dodgy make-money scheme using the "let me catch up out" tactics. It is unethical. Full stop. I am going to send an email to Bob Stewart to raise this.

Fight your case, try to get it waived. If the council want to raise money then they could bloody well set up a fund raising event instead of trying to TRICK people into breaking the law.

[Salsaboy]

Fight your ticket. Bromley council have a policy of not pursuing court cases for less than ?5000. It costs them too much money in legal fees. Take photos of the street and measure the distance from where you were parked to the sign at the start of the CPZ.

[Loz]

CPZs are like a container and the signage only needs to be at the entry points of the container. Your only defence is to find an entry point where there is no signage and say that that is how you entered the CPZ. Apart from that, if the signs around the CPZ are intact then you don't have much hope appealing on the basis that there was no sign nearby.

[Salsaboy]

You can also appeal if the sign was defaced, even partially, or part of it hidden in any way.