Pissed off with parking ticket

[PissOffZak]

Stopped where prohibited (on red route or clearway) thats what it said on the notice.
I was there for about max 5 mins before i realised, then OH moved it when he saw other people with a parking notice on their cars. Like i say there was no notice stuck on my car when OH went. I just recieved a letter this moring with the notice saying i need to pay the fine. The actual sign there was quite misleading as it said it was ok to park after 6pm. There was quite a few people there who were arging with the parking attendant who were parked before us who got tickets.

There was no ticket on the car

I would have gone with Goofers interpretation as well (in absence of other guidance also being present). There are signs similar to that near us and you can park for free outside the times stated...

@Goofers

I’d have read that as the parking charge and three hour limit only applies from 9:30-4:00 and that after 4 there is no charge and no three hour limit?!

That’s how I interpreted it too.

Clearly a confusing sign so might be worth trying to appeal it!

Stopped where prohibited (on red route or clearway) thats what it said on the notice.

This was the OP's first sentence though.

I'm very confused tbh 😱

Definitely appeal, I would have read it that parking charges applied between the times stated and free for up to three hours outside of those times. With the other people ticketed and talking to warden would suggest they read it as that also.

@Goofers
that's how I read it.

my bad...(reluctantly)I'll go pay it

[quote PissOffZak]@Goofers
that's how I read it.

my bad...(reluctantly)I'll go pay it[/quote]
Don’t. The fact that the sign’s ambiguous is amply demonstrated here. Appeal it.

Very confusing sign. I would have Mande the same assumption as you- that the Parker ticket is only required between those times, not that no parking is available outside those times. Doesn't state that it's otherwise no parking on that sign, but if it is an unsignposted clear way, you can always appeal on the basis of poor signage and accept you may lose.

@SpindleWhorl

Stopped where prohibited (on red route or clearway) thats what it said on the notice.

This was the OP's first sentence though.

I'm very confused tbh 😱

That's what it said on the notice.

Now you know how I feel

It clearly says you can park after 4

Right well if we're all so confused then it's a confusing sign!

@Still1nLove

It clearly says you can park after 4

It doesn’t. It doesn’t say you can’t either.

Don’t waste more time here, go to the Pepipoo forum as mentioned earlier to get advice. You’ll get no sympathy and they can be harsh sometimes (like mumsnet) but they WILL help you and let you know if you can appeal and how to do so. They are so knowledgable.

The sign does seem to be ambiguous. Round here, the controlled parking zone signs say 'resident permits only Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm', or 'resident permit holders only Monday to Friday 12pm to 2pm'. The CPZs are to prevent people driving in from Kent and parking free of charge on the roads near the station for the entire day. People without permits can park outside of those times. Where I work, the signs say 'Monday to Friday 9am to 5.30pm. Permit holders AB or 1 hour. No return within 2 hours' - this sign means that anyone can park at any time for a maximum of 1 hour but between the specified hours, only permit holders can park for over an hour.

The sign you shared implies that within the stated times there is a 3 hour maximum (that must be paid for). From the sign alone it is unclear what happens after 4pm - was there a single red line? If so, the sign is stating hours it cannot be used.

Appeal it. I’ve got off 2 and DM also 2 by appealing. Contrary to what you might think, they can sometimes be reasonable people!

Don't pay it. Definitely appeal it. Timings on a parking sign mean that restrictions apply between those times and therefore outside of those times there are usually no restrictions. So the sign is definitely misleading.

OP's sign is pointing out you need a ticket for 9:30am - 4pm, but it isn't saying when you can and can't park, it's only saying you need a ticket for those specified hours. It does not say she can't park outside those hours. However, I suspect there is (or is supposed to be) also an urban clearway sign somewhere saying you can't park from 6:30am(ish) - 9:30am or 4:00pm - 7:00pm(ish). And it is that that OP has missed and, unfortunately, needed to see.

It might be worth finding out where the sign is supposed to be and seeing if it's still there (they do get vandalised sometimes or for some other reason go missing). If the signage doesn't meet regulations then the ticket can be challenged. If the signage does meet regulations it might be worth pointing out to the council that putting another just under the parking notice might increase traffic flow in rush hour as it's clearly currently not obvious enough if there were several cars also blocking the clearway.

Was it double red markings on the curb? If so no way would i have parked there. I'd chalk it up as an expensive lesson.

If double yellows I'd challenge as the sign is

But that isn't a red route sign, they are bordered in red.

So, in the absence of seeing the road markings - that sign means you have to pay between 9.30 and 4pm. What happens after that depends entirely on the road markings and/or accompanying signs!

Having just spent an enjoyable summer parking for free in loading bay after the sign went missing I have had occasion to speak to local PEOs and wonder at the number of months it takes to get a sign replaced.

Go get the proper advice from the peppipoo forum. Those guys know the ins and out of these things down to the crossing of t's and dotting of i's
The sign may be missing additional parts (certainly seems to be) and thus be non compliant. I'd hope as you only stopped for a short time and didn't leave the car there that there would be some mileage in stopping to be able to analyse the restriction signage.
Additionally despite it being their day job many councils have fatal errors in the the wording of certain compulsory info on their PCN that hand you an immediate win.

So by your logic you could be given a speeding ticket as they didn't actually pin it on your car? It's all done by ANPR cameras. You parked on a red route (which is a huge no no) so you deserve the ticket.

I would appeal that. We have parking signs round there that are similar, and say "Mon - Sun 8am to 8pm 2 hours parking, no return within 2 hours, pay at machine" Outside of those hours (to 8pm to 8am) you can park for as long as you like and without a ticket. I know this is the case as I checked it with a warden, so it definitely doesn't mean "No parking at all between 8pm and 8am". If the parking restrictions were intended to prohibit parking outside the stated hours I'd expect that to be clear.

So yes, I'd appeal. They should be able to provide the evidence on which they ticketed you - such as CCTV footage (round here they have camera cars that drive around) and if it shows you were parked after 4pm then they haven't got a leg to stand on.

Did you check the area on Google Maps? Were there any other signs up or markings on the road?