Charger faulty / out-of-service — unable to charge

If the EV charger was broken, offline, displaying an error, or denying payment/RFID, the driver cannot reasonably be expected to comply with a 'must be charging' restriction. Adjudicators have repeatedly accepted broken-charger evidence as a complete defence, particularly where the driver attempted multiple connections and reported the fault.

Legal basis

Traffic Management Act 2004 s.78; principle of reasonableness in civil enforcement; Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/1168) — from Nov 2023 require 99% reliability for rapid chargers and a 24/7 helpline

How to identify this in your case

Photograph the charger screen showing error/offline state. Note the time. Call the CPO helpline (mandatory under the 2023 Regulations) and get a fault reference. Request the charger uptime/fault log.

Sample appeal wording

Before you send this

Deadline. A late submission can be turned down without your argument being read. Check your notice for the deadline and how it is counted.
Paying may end it. Paying can count as accepting the notice and can close a challenge already under way. Part-paying or acknowledging an old debt can also revive a time limit that had expired.
The amount can change. Check what happens to the sum if you challenge — it may be held, re-offered lower, or keep rising, and fees or enforcement can continue meanwhile.
Use the official route. Use the method, recipient and form your notice specifies, with any reference, evidence and signature it asks for. Sent elsewhere, it may not count.
Only say what is true. Do not copy any statement of fact unless it is true for you, and check the legal point still applies. Delete what does not fit. It may be treated as your statement.
Careful what you volunteer. Avoid unnecessary admissions — naming the driver or accepting responsibility can remove arguments. But answer anything you are legally required to answer, and do include the evidence your ground needs.
Keep the record. Keep what you sent, the attachments, any receipt, and the reply. Note the next deadline.

Sample wording to adapt and send yourself — it may not fit your notice or the stage you are at. Replace the bracketed prompts with your own details; leave any case citation as it is.

Dear Sir/Madam, Re: PCN [NUMBER] — EV Charging Bay — [DATE] I challenge this PCN on the ground of equipment failure outside my control. On arriving at bay [LOCATION] at [TIME], I attempted to initiate a charging session at charger [SERIAL/ID]. The charger displayed [ERROR / 'OUT OF SERVICE' / failed to authenticate]. Timestamped photograph attached. I contacted [CPO] helpline and was given fault reference [REF]. The Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/1168) require operators to maintain a 99% reliability standard for rapid chargers and to provide a 24/7 helpline. The charger was not functional. It would have been unreasonable to require me to leave the bay immediately when the very purpose of the bay (charging) was rendered impossible by a fault outside my control. The principle of reasonableness in civil enforcement is well established (Moses v Barnet LBC). Please cancel the PCN. Yours faithfully, [NAME]

Beat It writes this argument automatically

Scan your PCN — our AI checks if this ground applies to your specific ticket, drafts a properly-cited appeal letter, and sends it for you where the council takes email — guiding you through their own online form where they use one, so you press submit. The win fee is only charged if you win.

Scan my ticket

Charger faulty / out-of-service — unable to charge

Legal basis

How to identify this in your case

Sample appeal wording

Beat It writes this argument automatically

Sources

Related appeal grounds

Next steps