Council took more than 56 days to reply to your challenge

After you receive a Notice to Owner (the formal demand letter), you have 28 days to send the council a written challenge — called 'formal representations'. Once the council receives your challenge, they have 56 days to write back either accepting it or rejecting it. If they miss that 56-day deadline, the law treats them as having accepted your challenge, and they must cancel the penalty charge notice and any further demand that followed.

Legal basis

The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representations and Appeals) (England) Regulations 2022 (SI 2022/576) (duty to consider representations within the 56-day period); Traffic Management Act 2004 sch.7 para.2(9)

How to identify this in your case

Check the date you submitted formal representations (after receiving a Notice to Owner). Count 56 days from the date the council received your representations. If no decision has been received by day 56, the council is in breach and the PCN must be treated as cancelled.

Sample appeal wording

Dear Representations Team, Re: PCN [NUMBER] — Notice to Owner Response dated [DATE] I write to draw the council's attention to a statutory time limit breach. I submitted formal representations in response to the Notice to Owner on [DATE] (copy enclosed). The Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (England) General Provisions Regulations 2007, regulation 5, requires the council to serve a Notice of Rejection or Acceptance within 56 days of receiving those representations. As of today ([DATE]), [X] days have elapsed. No decision has been received. The council has therefore failed to comply with the statutory time limit. By operation of regulation 5, the council must now cancel the PCN. I require written confirmation of cancellation within 14 days. If enforcement action continues I will apply to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for a direction. Yours faithfully, [NAME]

Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.

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Sources

Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (England) General Provisions Regulations 2007 reg.5 (SI 2007/3483)