Appeal against a parking fine

You have three opportunities to challenge a parking Penalty Charge Notice. If you pay your parking fine whilst your appeal is being considered, your case will be closed and this will bring the appeals process to an end.

Stage 1 - Informal appeal to NSL Services Ltd

If you appeal within 14 days of the parking ticket being issued, and your appeal is rejected you will be given another 14 days to pay the fine at the reduced rate of 50%.

Stage 2 - Formal appeal to Bury Council

If you

• do not pay your fine and you do not appeal to NSL Services Ltd
• do not pay your fine and make an unsuccessful informal appeal

then after 28 days your case will be passed to the Parking Services department at Bury Council. We will write to you to request payment, which will now be the full amount. At this point you have a further right of appeal.

To make a formal appeal against a Penalty Charge Notice please complete the form below:

Stage 3 - Further appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal

If we reject your application, you have a further right of appeal to an independent tribunal.

The Traffic Penalty Tribunal will not be able to able to look at your case until we have written to you to say your formal appeal with Bury Council has been unsuccessful.

Reasons for appeals

There are legal grounds for appealing against a Penalty Charge Notice.

1. The offence did not occur. For example
   • the road signs and road markings were wrong
   • the events alleged did not happen
   • the vehicle was entitled to park
   • loading or unloading was taking place
   • a passenger was boarding or alighting
   • a valid disabled person's badge was displayed
   • a valid pay-and-display ticket or permit was displayed.
2. The vehicle was owned by someone else at the time. We will need to see proof that you had either
   • sold the vehicle before the date of the offence, and who you sold it to, or
   • bought it after the date of the date the ticket was issued.
3. The vehicle was hired to somebody else at the time under a formal hiring agreement. We will need to see a copy of the hire agreement, which shows that the hirer had accepted liability for penalty charges.
4. The vehicle was parked after it had been stolen or taken without your consent. We will need to see evidence that this has been reported to the Police.
5. The Penalty Charge is more than the amount properly due. This means we have asked for more than we are entitled to under the relevant regulations.
6. The traffic order under which the notice was issued was invalid. Parking tickets are issued under bylaws created by the Council, which specify parking restrictions. In this case you would need to argue that the Council had not followed the proper statutory steps in making the order.