Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs)
Challenges against Penalty Charge notices (PCNs)
If you challenge or make a representation against a PCN the case will be put on hold from the date your challenge is received. We will aim to respond to you within 25 working days.
To help us deal with your case, please make sure you provide any relevant evidence to support your challenge, along with the PCN number, your name, postal address and email address. If you do not provide these details, it will cause a delay in your case being fully considered.
The PCN will not increase in price or progress until we contact you with our decision.
Please do not contact us about your PCN if it has been less than 25 working days since you submitted your challenge. You can check the status of your PCN at https://esccocm.itsvc.co.uk/
If a PCN is issued to your vehicle, you can:
Do not ignore a PCN, it will not go away.
When a challenge is received the PCN is placed on hold and the charge will not increase until you have received a full response. If you challenge the PCN you should not send payment, submitting payment closes the case and we will not consider your challenge.
PCN charges
Parking PCNs
PCNs are issued at either £70 or £50 depending on the contravention. Both of these charges are discounted by 50% if they are paid within 14 days of issue.
- higher charge – £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days
- lower charge – £50, reduced to £25 if paid within 14 days
See which parking contraventions may result in the lower and higher rate charge.
Bus Lane PCNs
Bus lane PCNs are issued at £70. This is reduced to £35 if you pay within 21 days.
What happens if you do not pay or challenge your PCN?
It is important that you do not ignore a PCN. If a PCN is not paid or challenged the required legal documents will be sent to the registered keeper and eventually we will seek a Court Order to recover the outstanding debt.
What can I do if I have lost a PCN issued to my vehicle?
If you have lost a PCN issued to your vehicle and need the details to pay or challenge it, please email the notice processing team. You will need to provide the following information in your email.
• Vehicle registration number
• Location of contravention, if known
• Date of contravention, if known
• Your name, email address, and postal address
Know your parking rights
For more information about what to do if you receive a PCN watch the YouTube video by the British Parking Association,
- Know Your Parking Rights.
If you pay a PCN the case will be closed and any challenge against it may not be considered.
You can pay a PCN in the following ways:
Online
You will need your PCN number, vehicle registration and your credit or debit card details.
Make sure you enter the details correctly, particularly distinguishing between the numerical 0 and alphabetical o.
When you have entered the PCN number and vehicle registration, a summary of the PCN will be shown.
- To pay the PCN, click on Pay PCN.
- To view the photographs, click on the tab titled View Images.
- To challenge the PCN, click on the tab titled Challenge or Representation.
Post
Cheques or Postal Orders should be made payable to ‘East Sussex County Council’ and sent to:
Parking Team,
Eastbourne Library,
Grove Road,
Eastbourne,
BN21 4TL
Please make sure that you write the PCN number on the back of the cheque or postal order and allow two working days for 1st class post and five for 2nd class.
Telephone
Call 0345 658 5500. You will need your PCN number and your credit or debit card details.
Make sure you enter the details correctly, particularly distinguishing between the numerical 0 and alphabetical o.
In person
You can pay in person by cash, cheque, postal order and credit or debit card in the Battle, Bexhill, Eastbourne, Hastings, Lewes and Rye libraries.
To challenge a parking PCN you should contact us in writing within 14 days of issue before the charge increases.
You will need the PCN number and your vehicle registration. You should explain your reasons for challenging clearly and simply and include copies of any evidence to support your claim, such as receipts or witness statements.
To make representations against a bus lane PCN you should contact us in writing within 21 days of issue before the charge increases.
If you pay the PCN the case will be closed and any challenge against it may not be considered.
When a challenge or representation is received the PCN will be put on hold, the amount due will not increase until we have reached a decision and written back to you. We aim to respond to challenges received within 25 working days. You can challenge a PCN in the following ways:
Online
Make sure you enter the details correctly, particularly distinguishing between the numerical 0 and alphabetical o.
When you have entered the PCN number and vehicle registration, a summary of the PCN will be shown.
- To challenge the PCN, click on the tab titled Challenge or Representation.
- To pay the PCN, click on Pay PCN.
- To view the photographs, click on the tab titled View Images.
Email your challenge to Parking Penalties.
Make sure you include the PCN number and your vehicle registration.
Post
Send your challenge to the Parking Team:
Parking Team,
Eastbourne Library,
Grove Road,
Eastbourne,
BN21 4TL
Make sure you include the PCN number, your vehicle registration and an address for us to send the reply to.
Cancellation guide
In the interests of transparency we publish our cancellation guides which is used when considering challenges and appeals against PCNs.
How we deal with challenges
The challenge and appeal process is set by legislation and should not be confused with the Council’s complaint procedures. More information on both is available at:
PATROL – legislation (Parking And Traffic Regulations Outside London)
Customer feedback: East Sussex County Council, complaints and compliments
Legislation requires that all challenges against PCNs are considered by Council officers fully trained in the legal and statutory requirements. Your challenge will be investigated and considered by a member of the Parking Notice Processing Team who will respond to you with our decision.
Parking PCNs
If we decide not to cancel your PCN you have two options, to pay or make formal representations. In some cases we may ask for additional evidence, if this is the case our reply will detail what you need to do.
We will re-offer the opportunity to pay the discounted rate providing you challenged it within 14 days.
To continue to challenge a PCN formal representations need to be made by the registered keeper once a Notice to Owner is received. At this point the discount period no longer applies.
The Notice to Owner fully explains how to make formal representations and details the legal grounds on which these may be made. You must make representations within 28 days of receiving the form. We will then write back to you when we have reached our decision.
If we decide again not to cancel the PCN, we will send you a Notice of Rejection of Representations explaining why.
Bus Lane PCNs
If we decide not to cancel the PCN, we will send you a Notice of Rejection of Representations explaining why. We will re-offer the opportunity to pay the discounted rate providing you challenged it within 21 days.
What happens once a Notice of Rejection of Representations is issued?
You will be given a further opportunity to pay the charge and details on how to appeal to an independent adjudicator. More information on making an appeal can be found on the website of the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
The cost of a PCN is set by legislation. There are two charging bands: higher and lower. The higher charge is £70 and the lower charge is £50, both are reduced by 50% if they are paid within the discount period.
Higher rate contraventions
On-street parking
- 01 – Parked in a restricted street during prescribed hours
- 02 – Parked or loading/unloading in a restricted street where waiting and loading/unloading restrictions are in force
- 12 – Parked in a residents’ or shared use parking place or zone without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit or voucher or pay & display ticket issued for that place where required, or without payment of the parking charge
- 16 – Parked in a permit space or zone without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit where required
- 21 – Parked in a suspended bay/space or part of bay/space
- 23 – Parked in a parking place or area not designated for that class of vehicle
- 25 – Parked in a loading place during restricted hours without loading
- 26 – Parked in a special enforcement area more than 50 cm from the edge of the carriageway and not within a designated parking place
- 27 – Parked in a special enforcement area adjacent to a footway, cycle track or verge to meet the level of the carriageway.
- 40 – Parked in a designated disabled persons parking place without clearly displaying a valid disabled persons badge
- 42 – Parked in a parking place designated for police vehicles
- 45 – Parked on a taxi rank
- 47 – Stopped on a restricted bus stop or stand
- 48 – Stopped on a restricted area outside a school, a hospital or a fire, police or ambulance station when prohibited.
- 55 – A commercial vehicle parked in a restricted street in contravention of an overnight waiting ban
- 56 – Parked in contravention of a commercial vehicle waiting restriction
- 61 – A heavy commercial vehicle wholly or partly parked on a footway, verge or land between two carriageways
- 62 – Parked with one or more wheels on any part of an urban road other than a carriageway (footway parking)
- 99 – Stopped on a pedestrian crossing and/or crossing area marked by zigzags
Bus lane
- 34J – Being in a bus lane
Off-street parking
- 81 – Parked in a restricted area in a car park
- 85 – Parked without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit where required
- 87 – Parked in a disabled persons parking space without clearly displaying a valid disabled persons badge
- 91 – Parked in a car park or area not designated for that class of vehicle
- 92 – Parked causing an obstruction
Lower rate contraventions
On-street parking
- 5 – Parked after the expiry of paid for time
- 6 – Parked without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket or voucher
- 7 – Parked with payment made to extend the stay beyond initial time
- 11 – Parked without payment of the parking charge
- 19 – Parked in a residents’ or shared use parking place or zone with an invalid virtual permit or displaying an invalid physical permit or voucher or pay & display ticket, or after the expiry of paid for time
- 22 – Re-parked in the same parking place or zone within one hour (or specified time) of leaving
- 24 – Not parked correctly within the markings of the bay or space
- 30 – Parked for longer than permitted
Off-street parking
- 73 – Parked without payment of the parking charge
- 80 – Parked for longer than permitted
- 82 – Parked after the expiry of paid for time
- 83 – Parked in a car park without clearly displaying a valid pay and display ticket or voucher or parking clock
- 84 – Parked with additional payment made to extend the stay beyond initial time
- 86 – Not correctly parked within the markings of a bay or space
- 90 – Re-parked in the same car park within one hour (or specified time) after leaving
- 95 – Parked in a parking place for a purpose other than that designated
Warning Notices
We use warning notices for a limited number of minor contraventions on the first occasion only. Warning notices allow us to notify motorists that they have parked in contravention without issuing a PCN or charge.
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