When the Council's Own Sign Wins Your Appeal: The Havering Pay-and-Display Case

A Win That Every Driver Who's Ever Paid for Parking Should Read

Picture this: you pull into a parking bay, read the sign carefully, walk to the machine it points you towards, pay your fee, and return to your car — only to find a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) tucked under your wiper blade. You did everything right. You followed the instructions. And yet the council is telling you that you parked without paying.

This is exactly what happened to Ms Tunney in the London Borough of Havering. And her case — which she won — contains one of the most satisfying pieces of legal reasoning you'll ever read from a parking tribunal: sometimes, the council's own signage is the best weapon a driver has.

This case matters not because it involves an exotic legal argument or an obscure technical loophole. It matters because it's about something utterly ordinary — reading a sign and doing what it says — and it shows that when a council issues contradictory or misleading instructions, the driver should not be the one who pays the price.

What Happened

Ms Tunney parked her vehicle in the London Borough of Havering and did what any conscientious driver would do: she found the pay-and-display sign, read it, and paid at the machine it directed her to — the one located on the Service Road.

Shortly afterwards, a Civil Enforcement Officer (CEO) issued a PCN for the contravention of "parked without payment of the parking charge." From the council's perspective, Ms Tunney had paid using the wrong location code. In other words, they accepted that money had changed hands — they just argued it had gone to the wrong virtual bucket.

The case went to a tribunal hearing conducted by videolink, where Ms Tunney represented herself and a Mr Beasley appeared on behalf of Havering Council.

The Arguments

What Ms Tunney Said

Ms Tunney's position was straightforward: she had paid. She had used the pay-and-display machine on the Service Road, precisely because the sign in the area directed drivers to do exactly that. She wasn't guessing, she wasn't being careless — she was following written instructions provided by the council itself.

She also raised a telling factual point: Mr Beasley had produced a Google Maps photograph purporting to show a pay-and-display machine on Hampden Road. Ms Tunney disputed this entirely, stating that no such machine exists on Hampden Road. If that's true — and the adjudicator appears to have found her credible — then the council was pointing to a machine that wasn't there to justify a fine for using the machine that was.

What the Council Said

The council's representative, Mr Beasley, argued that Ms Tunney had paid using the wrong location code. In parking enforcement terms, this is a meaningful distinction: pay-and-display and pay-by-phone systems often require drivers to enter a specific code for a specific zone or bay, and paying for the wrong zone is treated as equivalent to not paying at all.

He produced the Google Maps image of what he said was a machine on Hampden Road, suggesting that Ms Tunney should have used that one instead.

However — and this is the moment the case turned — Mr Beasley conceded during the hearing that the sign in question did instruct drivers to pay at the machine on the Service Road. He acknowledged this, said he would investigate, and effectively stepped back from the council's central argument.

The Decision

The adjudicator allowed the appeal in full.

The reasoning was clean and direct: Ms Tunney had read the sign, followed its instructions, and paid at the machine it directed her to. The council's own signage told her to use the Service Road machine. She used the Service Road machine. There was therefore no proper basis for the penalty charge.

The appeal was allowed, the PCN cancelled, and Ms Tunney walked away without paying a penny of the fine.

The Legal Reasoning — In Plain English

1. You Can Only Be Penalised for Genuine Non-Compliance

Under the Traffic Management Act 2004, which governs civil parking enforcement in England, councils have the power to issue PCNs where a contravention has genuinely occurred. The contravention here was "parked without payment of the parking charge."

But payment had been made. The dispute was about which machine or code was used. The adjudicator's implicit reasoning is that where a driver has paid in good faith and in accordance with the instructions provided, it cannot fairly be said that they have "parked without payment." The spirit of the contravention — failing to pay — simply did not apply here.

2. Signage Must Be Clear, Accurate, and Consistent

One of the most important principles in parking law is that enforcement can only be fair if the instructions given to drivers are clear and accurate. Signs form part of the legal framework of parking control. If a sign directs a driver to a particular machine, that instruction carries weight.

The council cannot, on one hand, instruct drivers to pay at the Service Road machine and, on the other hand, issue fines when they do exactly that. The sign created a reasonable expectation that using the Service Road machine was correct. Ms Tunney acted on that expectation.

3. The Council's Concession Was Fatal to Their Case

When Mr Beasley conceded that the sign did direct drivers to the Service Road machine, the council's argument effectively collapsed. At that point, there was no sustainable basis for saying Ms Tunney had done anything wrong. She hadn't ignored the sign. She hadn't guessed. She'd read it and complied.

This is a principle that runs through many successful parking appeals: if the council's own evidence undermines its own case, the adjudicator will notice.

4. Disputed Facts About Physical Infrastructure Matter

Ms Tunney's challenge to the existence of a machine on Hampden Road was also significant. If the council's photograph showed a machine that no longer exists — or never existed in the form they claimed — then their argument that she should have used a different machine falls apart entirely. Adjudicators are not obliged to accept photographic evidence at face value, particularly when the driver gives credible evidence to the contrary.

Lessons for Drivers

1. Photograph the Sign Before You Pay

This case turned, in part, on what the sign actually said. Ms Tunney was able to describe its contents clearly and credibly. If you're ever in doubt about a sign's instructions, take a quick photo on your phone before you walk away. It takes five seconds and could save you £70 or more.

2. Keep Your Parking Receipt or Confirmation

Ms Tunney had evidence that she had paid. Whether you use a pay-and-display machine, a phone app, or a website, always keep your receipt, screenshot, or confirmation email. If a council claims you didn't pay, you need proof that you did.

3. If the Sign Directs You to a Specific Machine, Follow It — and Record That You Did

Pay-and-display systems in some areas use location codes, and using the wrong one can technically constitute non-payment. But as this case shows, if the sign itself directs you to a particular machine, you have a strong argument that you complied with the instructions given. Photograph the sign and the machine you used.

4. Don't Be Intimidated by Technical Arguments

The council's argument about "wrong location codes" sounds official and complicated. But at its heart, it was an argument that a driver who followed the council's own written instructions should still be fined. That argument didn't survive contact with a tribunal. If a council's technical case contradicts common sense and its own signage, challenge it.

5. Request the Council's Evidence Before Your Hearing

Ms Tunney knew to challenge the Google Maps photograph. You're entitled to see all the evidence the council relies on before your hearing. Review it carefully — sometimes, as here, the council's own evidence contains the seeds of its downfall.

The Key Takeaway

If you followed the sign, you followed the rules. A council cannot direct you to a machine, watch you use it, and then fine you for using it.

Ms Tunney's case is a reminder that parking enforcement is supposed to be about genuine contraventions — not administrative inconsistencies that punish compliant drivers. When the council's own signage becomes the driver's best defence, something has gone seriously wrong on the enforcement side.

If you ever receive a PCN after paying in good faith, don't assume the council is automatically right. Check what the sign said, keep your evidence, and be prepared to say — clearly and calmly — exactly what you did and why. As Ms Tunney proved, that can be more than enough.