Never received penalty notice
Never received penalty notice
Author
Discussion

John Henry

Original Poster:

173 posts

187 months

Sunday 17th August
quotequote all
Followed a Q7 into a box junction. I could see there was sufficient room for us both to clear the yellow grid. Q7 driver stopped approx 8ft short of the car in front of it. Despite my indicating as such, the driver refused to move forward, leaving my rear bumper and back tyres transgressing the last box junction yellow line for 20 secs. No obstruction caused to anyone else.
I know all of this as result of receiving a letter linking to video. I also recalled the incident. However, the letter states that I ignored the ‘initial letter’ which it claims was sent some two months earlier. That letter offered a discount on the penalty charge of £80.
The letter I’ve received demands £160 plus an £80 charge certificate.
I’ve contacted the local authority concerned and explained that I,
genuinely didn’t receive any communication prior. They confirm they never posted via a tracked or signed for service.
Following correspondence they state- ‘in the interest of reasonableness’ they will suspend the charge certificate if I pay the full ticket amount of £160.
This seems entirely unfair as I didn’t receive any previous correspondence.
Is it worth my contesting this point via hearing or is the system such that I will be doomed whatever?

Nick Forest

352 posts

102 months

Sunday 17th August
quotequote all
Pay it, and move on with your life.

Motorists are here to be milked until we’re bled dry…that’s the way these days unfortunately.

I’d say you’d had a reasonable outcome all things considered.

Glassman

24,095 posts

234 months

Sunday 17th August
quotequote all
They will have proof of sending.

croyde

25,135 posts

249 months

Sunday 17th August
quotequote all
Post is so st these days. I often receive stuff 2 weeks after they were sent.

Busa mav

2,793 posts

173 months

Monday 18th August
quotequote all
Lambeth Council by any chance ?

LosingGrip

8,493 posts

178 months

Monday 18th August
quotequote all
Post on ftla.uk and following their instructions for how to put your post (redacted copy of letters etc). They'll help you.

Very knowledgeable members.

John Henry

Original Poster:

173 posts

187 months

Wednesday 27th August
quotequote all
Followed a Q7 into a box junction. I could see there was sufficient room for us both to clear the yellow grid. Q7 driver stopped approx 8ft short of the car in front of it. Despite my indicating as such, the driver refused to move forward, leaving my rear bumper and back tyres transgressing the last box junction yellow line for 20 secs. No obstruction caused to anyone else.
I know all of this as result of receiving a letter linking to video. I also recalled the incident. However, the letter states that I ignored the ‘initial letter’ which it claims was sent some two months earlier. That letter offered a discount on the penalty charge of £80.
The letter I’ve received demands £160 plus an £80 charge certificate.
I’ve contacted the local authority concerned and explained that I,
genuinely didn’t receive any communication prior. They confirm they never posted via a tracked or signed for service.
Following correspondence they state- ‘in the interest of reasonableness’ they will suspend the charge certificate if I pay the full ticket amount of £160.
This seems entirely unfair as I didn’t receive any previous correspondence.
Is it worth my contesting this point via hearing or is the system such that I will be doomed whatever?

Rivenink

4,125 posts

125 months

Wednesday 27th August
quotequote all
John Henry said:
Followed a Q7 into a box junction. I could see there was sufficient room for us both to clear the yellow grid. Q7 driver stopped approx 8ft short of the car in front of it. Despite my indicating as such, the driver refused to move forward, leaving my rear bumper and back tyres transgressing the last box junction yellow line for 20 secs. No obstruction caused to anyone else.
I know all of this as result of receiving a letter linking to video. I also recalled the incident. However, the letter states that I ignored the ‘initial letter’ which it claims was sent some two months earlier. That letter offered a discount on the penalty charge of £80.
The letter I’ve received demands £160 plus an £80 charge certificate.
I’ve contacted the local authority concerned and explained that I,
genuinely didn’t receive any communication prior. They confirm they never posted via a tracked or signed for service.
Following correspondence they state- ‘in the interest of reasonableness’ they will suspend the charge certificate if I pay the full ticket amount of £160.
This seems entirely unfair as I didn’t receive any previous correspondence.
Is it worth my contesting this point via hearing or is the system such that I will be doomed whatever?
You stopped in a yellow box junction. You were caught doing so on video.

I'm guessing this was in London and was on a Red Route. The fine is £160, reduced to £80 if paid early (within 14 days). If you fail to pay the £160, an additional penalty charge can be applied of £80.

You've explained you didn't get the letters, and so they're giving you the benefit of the doubt by removing the £80 additional penalty charge.

Pay the £160, be more cautious about yellow boxes, and move on with life.

Cliftonite

8,635 posts

157 months

Wednesday 27th August
quotequote all
.
When you entered the box you had judged there was space available to clear it.

This guy will be able to help you:

https://www.yellowboxes.co.uk/


GasEngineer

1,798 posts

81 months

Thursday 28th August
quotequote all
Somebody else had exactly the same problem a couple of weeks ago..

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

TwigtheWonderkid

47,265 posts

169 months

Thursday 28th August
quotequote all
Cliftonite said:
.
When you entered the box you had judged there was space available to clear it.

This guy will be able to help you:

https://www.yellowboxes.co.uk/
He's not arguing his innocence. He knows he was in the wrong. He's arguing about the £160 fine when he wasn't given the chance to pay the original £80 fine.

John Henry

Original Poster:

173 posts

187 months

Saturday
quotequote all
I’ll finish this story. So they wouldn’t hear any representations after I called them, explaining I’d never received their first notice and thus hadn’t had a chance to pay the reduced fine.
They eventually write again and you get the opportunity to make a ‘statutory declaration’. This consists of signing to say you never received initial notice of fine. You have to get your signature witnessed by a brief.
Once done, you post to the court. Effectively they accept your stat dec, and you get the opportunity to appeal, and have opportunity to pay the reduced rate if you want to.
Quite why they don’t send the initial fines out via signed for delivery remains unclear.

reddiesel

2,841 posts

66 months

Is the Brief doing this for free ?

Subculture

40 posts

63 months

An offence is committed if you allow a vehicle to enter a box junction when your exit is blocked by a stationary vehicle AND you subsequently stop in the box junction.
If the vehicle in front of you was moving at the time you entered the box junction and you stop later no contravention has occurred. Similarly if you stop for any other reason, no contravention has occurred.

This is what I gather from the list of successful appeals to the adjudicator from the yell box website.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/3113/sche...

KungFuPanda

4,568 posts

189 months

John Henry said:
I ll finish this story. So they wouldn t hear any representations after I called them, explaining I d never received their first notice and thus hadn t had a chance to pay the reduced fine.
They eventually write again and you get the opportunity to make a statutory declaration . This consists of signing to say you never received initial notice of fine. You have to get your signature witnessed by a brief.
Once done, you post to the court. Effectively they accept your stat dec, and you get the opportunity to appeal, and have opportunity to pay the reduced rate if you want to.
Quite why they don t send the initial fines out via signed for delivery remains unclear.
Because people won’t sign for them and they face the risk of not being served.

NikBartlett

684 posts

100 months

If you are forced to stop in a box junction because the driver in front decides it would be good entertainment to block you in, despite there being plenty of room after the box to accommodate both vehicles then surely that's not an offence and should be spotted by the operators before a fine is generated ? Or are the councils now so cash strapped they have taken to hiring people to drive around all day trapping unsuspecting motorists in box junctions ?

2 sMoKiN bArReLs

31,459 posts

254 months

NikBartlett said:
If you are forced to stop in a box junction because the driver in front decides it would be good entertainment to block you in, despite there being plenty of room after the box to accommodate both vehicles then surely that's not an offence and should be spotted by the operators before a fine is generated ? Or are the councils now so cash strapped they have taken to hiring people to drive around all day trapping unsuspecting motorists in box junctions ?
Eh? Don't enter the junction until it's clear. Not, don't enter the junction assuming the driver in front won't stop unexpectedly.

John Henry

Original Poster:

173 posts

187 months

NikBartlett said:
If you are forced to stop in a box junction because the driver in front decides it would be good entertainment to block you in, despite there being plenty of room after the box to accommodate both vehicles then surely that's not an offence and should be spotted by the operators before a fine is generated ? Or are the councils now so cash strapped they have taken to hiring people to drive around all day trapping unsuspecting motorists in box junctions ?
That was the grounds of my appeal. When I eventually was allowed to make it. Dismissed. By this time I was sick of it all and elected to pay the £80. The person driving in front of me had about 3m between them and the rear of the car in front. They wouldn’t move forward leaving my rear bumper and part of rear tyre over last yellow line. I thought it egregious to fine in those circumstances where they had the video and could clearly see it wasn’t a thoughtless or flagrant breach.

donkmeister

11,022 posts

119 months

Yesterday (12:04)
quotequote all
John Henry said:
NikBartlett said:
If you are forced to stop in a box junction because the driver in front decides it would be good entertainment to block you in, despite there being plenty of room after the box to accommodate both vehicles then surely that's not an offence and should be spotted by the operators before a fine is generated ? Or are the councils now so cash strapped they have taken to hiring people to drive around all day trapping unsuspecting motorists in box junctions ?
That was the grounds of my appeal. When I eventually was allowed to make it. Dismissed. By this time I was sick of it all and elected to pay the £80. The person driving in front of me had about 3m between them and the rear of the car in front. They wouldn t move forward leaving my rear bumper and part of rear tyre over last yellow line. I thought it egregious to fine in those circumstances where they had the video and could clearly see it wasn t a thoughtless or flagrant breach.
I know you won't agree as you were doing what seemed right at the time, but the 8 feet in your OP between them and the car in front, that sounds like tyres and tarmac which is best practice.

As they were 8 feet from the car in front (I see this has increased to 10 feet in your later post), as you had gone hard up against their rear and were still overhanging the box with your rear wheels, then that means you would only have been OK had you both pulled up within 3 feet of the car in front. Physically, that fits, but that is car parking distance, not traffic jam distance.

So annoying, it's a mistake we could all make, but unfortunately you were in the wrong.

Edited by donkmeister on Monday 24th November 12:06

GasEngineer

1,798 posts

81 months

Yesterday (13:01)
quotequote all
reddiesel said:
Is the Brief doing this for free ?
Almost. Solicitors can only charge a standard fee of £5 for witnessing a signature.