Pay-by-Phone System Was Down When You Tried to Pay
Councils that only offer cashless or app-based payment (such as RingGo or PayByPhone) must make sure the system actually works. If the app crashed, the phone line was unreachable, your vehicle or location wasn't recognised, or your payment was refused despite a valid account — and there was no working pay-and-display machine you could use instead — you were unable to pay through no fault of your own. A ticket issued in those circumstances should be cancelled.
Legal basis
Principle of reasonableness in civil enforcement (Moses v London Borough of Barnet [2006] EWCA Civ 1240); Consumer Rights Act 2015 ss 49-50; Statutory Guidance on civil parking enforcement (England).
How to identify this in your case
Did you try to pay using an app or phone line (for example RingGo or PayByPhone) and it failed? Check whether you have a screenshot of an error message or a timed record of the failed attempt. Think about what exactly went wrong: did the app go down, was the location not listed, was your payment declined even though your account was fine, or could you not get through on the phone? Also check whether there was a pay-and-display machine at the location that was actually working at the time — if there was, this ground is unlikely to apply.
Sample appeal wording
formal
Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.
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