Appeal a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN)

We're currently taking up to 60 working days to respond to first stage (informal challenges) appeals: If you submitted your appeal in the discounted period (within 14 days of the date on the PCN), if your appeal is not successful you will be re-offered the discounted period for a further 14 days.

How to appeal

You can challenge a PCN (sometimes called a parking ticket or parking fine) if you think it has been issued unfairly. You should submit your challenge as soon as possible.

You have 28 days to submit an informal appeal. If you appeal within 14 days your penalty charge could be reduced by 50%.

If you do submit an appeal please do not pay the PCN until you have received notification of the outcome of your challenge.

We will aim to respond to you:

• within 30 working days of receiving your appeal
• however during peak times our response time may exceed 60 working days
• if you have not heard from the council within 60 working days, you can contact the council to check on the status of your appeal. Prior to contacting us please ensure you have checked your email inbox and spam/junk folders to see whether a response has been sent.

If you submitted your appeal in the discounted period (within 14 days of the date on the PCN), if your appeal is not successful you will be re-offered the discounted period for a further 14 days.

If you do not pay the PCN within the further 14 days the council will issue a 'notice to owner' (the registered owner/keeper of the vehicle as held by the DVLA). The owner/keeper will then have 28 days to pay the full charge or appeal to the council (this then becomes a second stage appeal, also known as a formal representation).

Appeal online

To appeal your PCN you will need your vehicle registration number and your PCN reference number which will start with either AD, AX, WU or UW.

Appeal a PCN (parking ticket) online

If you appeal online, then you will be notified of the outcome to your appeal via the email address you provide. This will be sent from our automated email address, which is a:

Do not Reply email:
'noreply-adur-worthing@councilparking.org'

* Please note: the council will usually send its decision about your appeal at the first stage by email, and at the second stage by post. 

If you have not had a response within 30 working days:

• please ensure you check your 'spam' folders
• however during peak times our response time may exceed 60 working days
• if you have not heard from the council within 60 working days, you can contact the council to check on the status of your appeal. Prior to contacting us please ensure you have checked your email inbox and spam/junk folders to see whether a response has been sent.

If you receive the following warning “the penalty charge number does not match the vehicle registration number” please check and re-enter the details. Please ensure that you are entering the full PCN number.

If the problem still occurs please follow the instructions below to appeal by post. We are unable to accept appeals via email.

Appeal by post

If you challenge your PCN by post please include the following:

• your PCN reference number (starting with either AD, AX, WU or UW)
• vehicle registration number
• name and address
• what happened and why you feel that you should not have to pay the PCN
• any supporting evidence, such as copies of your Blue Badge or pay and display ticket, or photos of any road signs or markings

Send your appeal to:

• Adur & Worthing Councils
  PO Box 3584
  Chippenham
  Wiltshire
  SN15 9EF

Grounds for appeal

Reasons you may want to appeal a PCN include:

• the alleged parking contravention did not occur
• the penalty charge (or release or storage charge) exceeds the appropriate amount
• the Traffic Regulation Order was invalid
• you were not the owner of the vehicle when the alleged contravention occurred
• at the time of the alleged contravention the vehicle was being used without your consent
• you are responding from a vehicle hire company and can supply the hirer's name and address

Each case is considered on its own merit, and any decision made is based on individual circumstances and in accordance with appeal process guidelines. See also:

• Further information (below) - parking policy, grace periods, observation periods and parking operation plan

What happens next

• If your challenge is accepted, your PCN will be cancelled and you will be notified of the decision
• If more evidence is needed to consider your appeal we will contact you by post within 14 days to let you know what we need
• If your challenge is rejected you will receive a letter explaining why. You may then choose to make a further formal challenge to the councils
• If this formal appeal is rejected you will either need to pay the penalty in full, or can make a final appeal through the independent Traffic Penalty Tribunal. For more information see the Traffic Penalty Tribunal website

How long does the appeal process take?

On average, it will take between one and two months. Providing all available supporting evidence when you submit an appeal can help speed up the process.

Does the charge increase if you appeal?

If we receive your first challenge within 14 days of the date your PCN was issued, the PCN is put on hold while we investigate. If the appeal is unsuccessful you will only have to pay 50% of the fine, as long as you pay within 14 days of the outcome notification.

If you submit your first appeal more than 14 days after your PCN was issued and it is unsuccessful the charge will remain at the original amount (£50 or £70).

If after 56 days of a PCN being served we have received no payment and no appeal has been submitted, the original charge will increase by 50%.

Further help

If you need any further advice you can call us on 01903 221180, 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday (not bank holidays). Please be ready to quote your PCN reference and vehicle registration number when you call.

Please note appeals cannot be made via telephone.

Further information

• West Sussex Parking Policy - on the WSCC website
• Grace periods (232KB)
• Observation Periods - Adur (13KB)
• Observation Periods - Worthing (142KB)
• Parking Operation Plan (75KB)

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