Beware of London fining zones
The Freight Transport Association wants to notify transport companies to train their drivers in recognizing penalty charge notice hotspots after seeing a 50 percent jump in charges within the capital.
The FTA’s Penalty charge notice survey from 2012 uncovered that out of the 27 companies surveyed £2.9 million in penalties were given out and there was a resulting rise in costs relating directly to the increase in the number of PCNs issued on the capitals roads.
A third of the enforcement authorities accounted for 80 per cent of all PCNs issued, with the London Borough of Westminster, London Borough of Camden, City of London and Transport for London more likely to issue to PCNs to FTA members that other London boroughs.
Head of Policy for London, Natalie Chapman said,
‘ Commercial vehicle operators have grown smarter when dealing with the problems of making deliveries in the unfriendly roadside environment of central London, but the findings of the survey suggest that there is a need for them to improve their understanding of how certain parking restrictions apply. As well training drivers and identifying PCN hotspots, a well targeted and intelligent approach to appealing unfair PCNs could save some companies hundreds of thousands of pounds a year’.
Adding,
‘It is equally for local authorities to ensure that there is sufficient kerbside space and facilities for deliveries, and for civil enforcement officers to understand why trucks and vans may be in a restricted parking area in the first place and to apply some common sense when issuing tickets’.
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