by Kimosabe » Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:34 pm
It's not your friend who is to blame for poor driving but the design of the junction by the sounds of it. Do you have a link to a map of the junction?
As far as PCNs go I have just one rule. Always appeal, object, complain, make as big a noise and for as long as possible, because tribunal adjudicators can be very reasonable people when you have stood your ground for several months.
With the PCN data available, I would imagine that the bizarre situation of fining drivers (in this situation) would prove that fines don't resolve the solution of how drivers are meant to navigate poorly designed junctions. Some people simply cannot be bothered with the appeals process and would rather pay a fine for something which fines don't resolve. Councils rely on this.
As an aside to this, I hold an unbroken record of never having paid a PCN, I haven't had that many but over the years, I've avoided paying possible hundreds of pounds. The last one took 9 months to get to tribunal and the adjudicator threw the council out of the room after 10 minutes because the scruffy twerp (literally) from the Council's legal team began by being 10 minutes late for the hearing, then he defended the wrong case, then had no explanation for why so much money (around £6,000 and rising) had been spent on such a ridiculously clear-cut case (resident's parking bay, loading and unloading) before finding in my favour. I had the local press (I was in the local rag twice over it, photos and all), local and national radio and a couple of bloggers making noise about it. Inter-departmental arse-elbow navigation failures are what your friend is relying on. They are not rare! The case was found in my favour and the Council then took out a separate proceeding against me, possibly in the hope that they'd eventually prove something. The Court (Northants) had already found in my favour, the tribunal adjudicator had found in my favour and the Council had lost but this didn't deter them because they couldn't afford a negative result having just wasted thousands of pounds. That case was dropped when I gave them notice that I would happily attend any Court hearing and that their legal twerp would need to stand as a witness. So if it's just a matter of paying a fine to save yet more money being squandered by Councils, it's a fair argument in that sense but wholly unethical all the same.
The thing is, if your friend can prove that he acted reasonably, he has a defense and I believe that is enough for him to go through the appeals process. One thing though, if he does go for an appeal, tell him to not become emotionally involved or to succumb to the large volumes of intimidating fear-mail he will receive, because he will definitely be given the run around and getting stressed about it is what causes many people to just pay up for the sake of their own sanity. Councils rely on this too, which I believe is why they do it. Writing to the council is generally not a good idea because letters will most likely be binned immediately if not part of a form. He could compile a case by using googlemaps and photos of where the alleged offense took place. Tell him to make sure he gets everything the Council says in writing, as phone conversations are difficult to explain after the event. Use local media because it's free and they love a good local drama.
Hope this helps.
A wise man once told me that "it depends". I sometimes agree.