Bailiffs instructed after Transport for London (TfL) error — no tribunal access, newborn involved

[MakiRoll25]

I’m posting partly for advice and also because I am struggling to believe this is allowed to happen…

I received a Transport for London (TfL) penalty which arose because TfL recorded an incorrect vehicle registration number on their systems for our car — which TfL has already acknowledged.
Our vehicle was in fact registered correctly, but due to this error, it did not appear as compliant when checked.

I challenged the penalty on this basis.
However, due to childbirth and post-natal recovery (baby came early & emergency c-section) I missed the procedural deadline for appeal.

London tribunals have confirmed they cannot adjudicate, which means we have never had any independent review of the case, despite the original issue being a TfL error.

TfL has continued enforcement and bailiffs are now being instructed, which is incredibly frightening. There appears to be no safeguard in the system once a deadline is missed, even where there is clear vulnerability and no access to adjudication.

Dealing with this during the early months of a newborn has been stressful and sad that is unnecessarily during a precious time. 😢

I exhausted formal routes and are now facing enforcement without ever having had the case properly heard.
Any thoughts on whether this seems acceptable and anyone has experienced anything similar with TfL or enforcement would be really appreciated.
Thank you!

I think in this circumstance I’d write to the consumer rights section of the Times or the Guardian. Once the PR department gets involved it turns out it’s very possible to cut through all the computer says no bullshit.

Try seeing if your MP can unblock the issue.

Is there a reason why you (nor your partner) didn’t pay the fine before appealing it? Does the paperwork not make this clear?

Payment would have closed the case and removed the ability to challenge their error.

The penalty only arose because TfL recorded the wrong vehicle registration number on their system, which they have since acknowledged was their error. Our vehicle was correctly registered.

Thanks for the suggestion. I have since done this and also contacted BBC London. I do hope there is an avenue to resolving “computer says no”.

Are you sure the tribunal can't deal with the case? I don't know which one is involved, but most statutory tribunals have a procedure where they can accept a late appeal if there is a good reason for it.

https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/red-routes/penalty-charge-notices/make-a-representation
Im not sure I understand - are you saying that your vehicle should not have received a PCN, but it should have been another vehicle?

I hope it works. Let us know how you get on.

Can you please clarify why the penalty was issued? Also, you said you did submit a challenge - I am assuming that it was rejected and you then missed the opportunity to go before an adjudicator. Is that correct?

In terms of your baby, did you stay in hospital or away from home to recover? This is relevant as depending on your answer, there may well be another avenue of appeal.

Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels charge.
Correct.
I gave birth in London but was also away at my parents-in-law’s following. We had to send multiple letters to change address which wasn’t picked up by TfL for months. This indeed confuses things.

Their systems recorded the wrong number plate registration, thus the correct one was not identified as registered. We were able to prove that our car and info was set up correctly. TfL acknowledged their mistake and rescinded some (but not all) of the PCNs.

When did you go back to them for them to confirm they had the wrong reg? Was this during the appeals stage? If so what happened then?

Try writing to the guardian with a full description of what happened

We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at [email protected] or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions.

On Monday when I’m back at work I’ll check through some info to see if there’s anything I can suggest. We had a case of fine with a rental vehicle. We settled the fine prior to TFL receiving the notification from the rental company as to who the hirer was. TfL then refunded our payment but it wasn’t noticed and the next thing was a bailiff at the door of the vehicle renter. I can’t remember exactly what we did hence needing to check but involved writing to the court who issued the proceedings on behalf of TfL. If I don’t post please shout @MakiRoll25- peri memory is shocking.

Thank you. So it's almost impossible to appeal against the contravention now. However, you can appeal against the fact that some of the notices were not received (on time). It's the only real hope at this stage. So you need to file a statutory declaration with the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) - pls call them on Monday and request that the relevant forms are emailed to you. The forms are available to download on line but it's easy to use the wrong form and then delay things .

You can complete the form and state that you were not at home for weeks due to giving birth. Had you received the letters on time, you would've paid / appealed further. It's a simple process and will put everything on hold. Send all proof (birth certificates / hospital letters etc) with the forms. If you're successful, the case will be put back a couple of stages and an adjudicator will look at your case and review it.

I am not doubting what you have said about the mistake that has been made with the registration. I just think that you'll be banging your head against the wall because no one will review the case at this stage. Email them again by all means but also file a statutory declaration - it protects your rights under the legislation.

I hope that makes sense. The telephone number for the TEC is online.

This is great advice. Thank you. (Very impressed by everyone’s knowledge generally.) Will get onto this!

Interestingly, we actually raised the issue with car registration before we even received some of the penalties…

How did you know they had recorded the wrong reg number at that point?

Multiple penalities. So as soon as I received the first PCN (which was shortly before I went into labour early and gave birth), I raised it with TfL.