How Can I Challenge A Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?
This blog serves to answer the question “How Can I Challenge A Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?” While driving on the roads of Wiltshire Council you have to ensure that you actively observe Bus Lane and Moving Traffic contravention codes so that you rarely end up with a Penalty Charge Notice in the first place. It is necessary for you to have an acceptable reason for challenging your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN which can be supported by a piece of evidence proving your point of view.
How Can I Challenge A Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?
The towns of Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon both form part of the Wiltshire Council and the Wiltshire Council is responsible for serving and dealing with Penalty Charge Notices in the Town Councils. So a Penalty Charge Notice issued in the Melksham and Bradford Upon Avons Town Councils is actually a Wiltshire PCN.
The Wiltshire Council will also decide the result of your PCN challenge and will either choose to withdraw your PCN or send you a Notice of Rejection of Representations. You need to ensure that you know all of the contravention codes enforced along your daily route in Wiltshire Council and actively attempt to avoid breaching these restrictions. This will mean that if you do end up with a PCN, the PCN will be easy to challenge and you might even be able to attach video footage of the incident with your formal representation to prove that the contravention didn’t occur.
If you are mindful of Parking Zone, Bus Lane, and Moving Traffic restrictions enforced in the Melksham or Bradford Upon Avon Town council, you will only end up with a PCN which resulted due to unforeseeable mitigating circumstances. These reasons can be mentioned in your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN challenge and backed by authentic evidence such as a medical certificate from a certified General Practitioner that states a serious health condition you are suffering from. This medical reason must be serious enough to affect your driving and prevent you from properly steering your vehicle or controlling its speed.
It is essential for you to compile a strong appeals case before sending in your challenge so as to avoid being served a “Notice of Rejection of Representations” from the Wiltshire Council, which means the council has denied your PCN appeal.
In many cases, PCNs are not enforceable and you may be able to win your case and avoid having to pay your fine.
You could begin the process by speaking to an online solicitor for as little as £5.
What is a Penalty Charge Notice?
A Penalty Charge Notice is a monetary penalty issued to drivers or motorists for committing certain traffic contraventions including violating Parking, Bus Lane, and Moving Traffic restrictions. A PCN is issued for failing to follow Parking zone, bus lane enforcement, and moving traffic restrictions mentioned in the Road Traffic Act 1984 and the Traffic Management Act 2004.
A penalty charge notice can be handed to you by a Civil Enforcement Officer or dispatched to your (DVLA) residential address by post. Traffic contraventions are observed by CCTV cameras and Civil Enforcement Officers before a violation is detected and the vehicle is charged with a PCN.
A PCN might also be issued for failing to pay road charges on time. You have 28 days to decide how and if you would like to challenge your Penalty Charge Notice. After 28 days if you have neither paid nor challenged your PCN, you will be sent a charge certificate from the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
If you don’t challenge a PCN, you should pay the fine within 28 days, otherwise, its amount will increase by 50%. A £70 PCN will be worth £105 if you pay it in the 14 days after receiving your charge certificate.
What is the procedure for appealing against a Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?
You can submit a formal representation to your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN by writing a letter addressed to the Wiltshire Council or by filling in the online formal representation form on the Wiltshire Council website.
You need to brainstorm reasons to challenge a Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN from the day of the incident and list them down in word processing software or on paper. It is essential to have some authentic evidence to attach with your PCN appeal in the form of video footage of the traffic violation, medical certificates explaining your mitigating circumstances or pay and display tickets.
The evidence must be matched with the grounds for your appeal before describing the incident from your point of view. Your rough formal representation can be edited for clarity multiple times before it is ready to attach to your online appeal to the Wiltshire Council. You need to visit the Wiltshire Council website to submit a formal representation to your PCN. You have to open this webpage to enter your PCN number, your Vehicle Registration Number, and a Web Code mentioned on your Penalty Charge Notice. You need to click on “Continue” to view your PCN details after which you can fill in the online formal representation form.
It is essential to upload authentic evidence material with your PCN challenge to describe your mitigating circumstances to the Wiltshire Council and for explaining your point of view of the events which took place at the traffic violation scene. The text of your appeal must state the relevant contravention code on your PCN and explain how you attempted to avoid the error (supported by photos or video footage).
Once you have proofread your appeal to eliminate any reasons for your challenge which might convey a disregard for traffic contravention codes enforced in the Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon Towns Councils (by mixing up the contraventions) or reasons which involve forgetfulness to justify your actions, you can submit the formal representation.
You can also submit an informal representation to your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN (CCTV Bus Lane PCN or a Parking PCN served by a CEO which had to be delivered by post) by accessing your PCN details here. To access the form you need to enter your PCN number and Vehicle Registration Number on this webpage. Once you have typed in these details, you can click on “Continue”
You have to fill out the informal representation form by typing your full name, email address, and the contents of your informal representation. Once you are sure that you have constructed a strong appeals case to make the council grant you a formal representation, you can submit your form. The informal appeals stage is applicable to PCNs sent by post.
Another way to send in your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN challenge is by mail. You can write down a formal representation on paper and attach evidence documents or photographs to the form by using a stapler or paper clip. Your letter should mention your PCN number, date of issue of the PCN, your vehicle registration number, and personal details. This PCN challenge written on the back side of your Notice to Owner needs to be sent to Wiltshire Council’s Parking Services address.
Your PCN appeals form and all accompanying evidence documents (enclosed in an envelope) need to be sent to:
Parking Services,
Wiltshire Council,
Monkton Park Offices,
Monkton Hill,
Chippenham,
Wiltshire,
SN15 1ER
What Can I Do If My Vehicle has been towed away?
If your vehicle has been towed away from the Melksham or Bradford Upon Avon Town Councils you need to call 101 to ask the Wiltshire Police about the matter. If your vehicle was towed away for violating your driving license rules, you should have received a form 3078 (seizure notice) by post. Your inquiry will be addressed by the Wiltshire Police staff and in case your vehicle has been towed away you will have to visit the Trowbridge Police Station to get it released.
At the Trowbridge Police Station, you will be required to verify 2 kinds of ID documents such as a passport and a driving licence. You could also use 2 other combinations of documents such as your original birth certificate and your vehicle registration certificate. You should also have the insurance certificate for your vehicle and your V5C vehicle registration certificate (with you) unless this has already been used as one of the 2 ID documents.
Vehicles are seized by the Wiltshire Police under Section 165 A or the Road Traffic Act 1988 due to a violation of your driving license rules. You must remember to visit the Trowbridge Police Station within 7 days of the date mentioned on your form 3078. The amount of money you will need to unclamp your vehicle includes a £200 release fee and storage charges of £20 per day.
So for example if your vehicle was towed away by a parking company 5 days ago, you will need (£20×5) + £200 = £400 to get it released from the vehicle pound. These vehicle release fees and storage charges are set under The Road Traffic Act 1998 (Retention and Disposal of Seized Motor Vehicles).
You should pay your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon Parking PCN online before visiting the Trowbridge Police Station. But even if you just have £400 with you (for leaving your vehicle in the pound for up to 5 days), you can still pay the amount at the Trowbridge Police Station to get your vehicle released before you pay the PCN fine. It is more important to collect your vehicle from the Trowbridge Police Station, before paying your PCN fine because storage fees of £20 are being added every day and your vehicle will no longer be in the vehicle pound after 14 days.
You will have to pay your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon Parking PCN within 14 days when you recover your impounded vehicle, which will cost you only £35. Your vehicle pound charges can vary so it is best to get it removed from there as soon as possible. For each week your vehicle is left in the pound you will have to pay £140 extra storage charges.
Once you contact the Wiltshire Police by dialling 101 and tell them your vehicle registration number you will be guided to the Trowbridge Police Station for recovering your impounded vehicle. The Wiltshire Police has its police stations located at Swindon, Trowbridge, and Salisbury.
You will have to make the payment to release your vehicle from the Trowbridge Police Station by visiting the location in person with at least £200 in cash or available as credit on your payment card. The Wiltshire Police accepts Visa Card, Master Card, and Maestro Card for the payment of vehicle release and storage charges.
The Trowbridge Police Station is located at this address :
Trowbridge Police Station,
Polebarn Road,
Trowbridge,
Wiltshire,
BA14 7EP
You can visit the Trowbridge Police Station anytime between 8:30 am and 05:30 pm from Monday to Friday. Trowbridge Police station is also open on Saturdays from 08:30 am to 1:00 pm. Staff from the Wiltshire Police will be available at the police station to address your queries and for receiving the payment for vehicle release fees and storage charges..
You should have the 2 ID Documents, a copy of form 3078, your vehicle’s MOT certificate, and your vehicle registration certificate (if this is not your ID document). After the Wiltshire Police staff has verified all these documents, your vehicle seizure notice will be stamped to authorise the release of the vehicle.
You also need to go to the Trowbridge Police Station with a cash payment or payment card for making the payment of vehicle release fees and any vehicle storage expenses.
You must remember to recover your vehicle from the custody of the Wiltshire Police before the 14th day. If you leave your vehicle at the Trowbridge Police Station for more than 14 days, it might be scrapped or sold by the Wiltshire Police.
How Can I Pay my Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?
You can pay your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN on the Wiltshire Council’s online payments page, by sending a check or postal order through the mail, or by calling Wiltshire Council’s automated payments hotline.
If you choose to make your PCN fine payment online, you should visit the Wiltshire Council Payment Reference Entry page. Here, you can enter your PCN number and Vehicle Registration Number and click on “Continue” to log in to your PCN account. You will see an option to pay your PCN, which needs to be selected.
On the next page, you have to enter your payment card details to complete your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN payment. Wiltshire Council accepts Mastercard, Visa Card, Maestro Card, UK Maestro Card, and Visa Electron card for PCN fine payments.
You might want to call on Wiltshire Council’s automated payments hotline for paying your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN. For this, you have to call on 0300 456 0119. On the call, you will need to enter your PCN number and payment card details. You can use the * key to enter the letters in your PCN number. This payment hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You should wait to receive a confirmation code for your PCN payment before ending the call.
You can also pay your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN by sending a check or postal order payable to “Wiltshire Council”. You also need to attach the payment slip in your “Notice To Owner” document to this payment. The check or postal order should have your PCN number and Vehicle Registration Number written on the back. This payment needs to be sent to:
Parking Services,
Wiltshire Council,
Monkton Park Offices,
Monkton Hill,
Chippenham,
Wiltshire,
SN15 1ER
How much is the PCN fine for each of the 3 kinds of PCNs served in the Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon Town Councils?
A Parking PCN in Melksham Town Council and Bradford Upon Avon Town Council is served for violating higher or lower level parking restrictions. You have to pay £70 for committing a higher level parking contravention and £50 for a lower level parking contravention. If you pay the parking fine within 14 days, you will just be paying £35 or £25 as a 50% discount is applicable to your payment.
For failing to comply with a bus lane contravention code or a moving traffic restriction in Melksham Town Council or Bradford Upon Avon Town and Parish Council, you will be charged a £70 Penalty Charge Notice. The 50% early payment discount reduces both these types of PCN fines to £35 if a bus lane PCN is paid within 21 days and a moving traffic PCN is paid within 14 days
What will happen if I don’t pay my Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN within the 28-day limit?
You should not ignore traffic contraventions or the Penalty Charge Notices resulting from them or cultivate a careless attitude towards driving in the Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon Town Councils. Per your driving license rules, you are bound to abide by Parking, Bus Lane, and Moving Traffic contravention codes in Wiltshire Council.
If you neither pay your Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN within 28 days nor decide to appeal against it, you will be sent a charge certificate from the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. The charge certificate increases your PCN fine by 50%, which means you will be paying £105 (or £75) now. You should pay the charge certificate within 14 days as it cannot be appealed and ignoring the charge certificate may result in the filing of a court order (for recovery of debts) against you by the Wiltshire Council.
You will be sent a “Notice of Debt Registration” and a witness certificate from the Traffic Penalty Tribunal if you don’t pay the charge certificate amount within 14 days. The unpaid amount will be treated as a debt with the Traffic Enforcement Centre at the Northampton County Court.
The court order for debt recovery enforces that the charge certificate amount must be paid in full within 21 days the county court will have to use additional powers to recover the money from your possession which means employing Enforcement Agents to (contact you or) visit your personal premises.
Can I Dispute A Wiltshire PCN with the Traffic Penalty Tribunal if the Wiltshire Council dismisses my appeal?
Yes, you can dispute the decision of the Wiltshire Council in your “Notice of Rejection of Representations” with the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. The Traffic Penalty Tribunal website requires you to enter details given on your Notice of Rejection of Representations, after opening this webpage
You can watch this instructional video here to learn about your challenge process. The video clearly explains how to use the online service offered by the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. On the Traffic Penalty Tribunal webpage, you will first have to select the type of PCN you were served by the Wiltshire Council (shown on the bottom part of the page).
After clicking on your specific type of Penalty Charge Notice, you should select “England” (Outside London). In the window which opens up, you should click on the orange box which reads “If you don’t agree with the PCN, you can make representations against it”.
After viewing the instructions on the following page, you need to click on “Start your appeal here” at the bottom of the webpage You will then be required to enter your Vehicle Registration Number, the reference number from the “Notice of Rejection” letter from the Wiltshire Council, and your PCN number for which the appeal was rejected on this page.
You can use the online service to challenge multiple “Notices of Rejection” simultaneously. You will require a valid email address to create an account on the Traffic Penalty Tribunal website. You have to upload a copy of your “Notice of Rejection of Representations” letter to your application by using the Traffic Penalty Tribunal’s online portal.
You can upload evidence such as video clips of your traffic violation scenes (taken from inside your vehicle), medical certificates from a certified General Practitioner, maps of the area showing the exact distance your vehicle travelled inside a no-entry zone, and scanned copies of “pay and display” tickets. You should construct a strong appeals case to communicate your mitigating circumstances or to deliver your assertion that the traffic violation never occurred.
The Traffic Penalty Tribunal should be able to ascertain the legitimacy of your situation by viewing evidence material uploaded to the PCN appeals system.
Your appeal of the “Notice of Rejection of Representations” should be submitted to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal within 28 days of receiving your Notification of Rejection from the Wiltshire Council. You must avail yourself of this chance of a free and independent hearing of your case.
You will be able to contact the Traffic Penalty Tribunal adjudicator during the formulation of your appeal. The result of your appeal will be communicated to you within 14-28 days of submitting your representation. If the adjudicator decides the case in your favour, the PCN will be cancelled by the Wiltshire Council.
Conclusion
This blog post served to answer the question “How Can I Challenge A Melksham and Bradford Upon Avon PCN?” How you will proceed to write down your PCN challenge depends on whether you are dealing with a Parking, Bus Lane or Moving Traffic PCN as the different contravention codes mean that you can only use specific reasons for your formal representation. Mitigating circumstances can generally apply to most contravention codes as they might relate to a medical emergency or to your vehicle breaking down, both of these grounds need to be supported with evidence documents already in your possession.
