Traffic Management Act 2004

Differential Charges

The Traffic Management Act 2004 requires local authorities to have two levels of Charge depending on the severity of the contravention. The Act stipulates which contraventions are higher level and which are lower to ensure consistency between different local authorities.

Within the Borough of Poole the two amounts are

Higher Level £70 (reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days)
Lower Level £50 (reduced to £25 if paid within 14 days)

Not all the nationally agreed contraventions will apply in all local authorities as some refer to parking places or equipment that one particular authority may not have. The following contravention codes will apply in Poole.

On street Contraventions

On Street Contraventions
CODE	DESCRIPTION	DIFFERENTIAL LEVEL	AMOUNT
1	Parked in a restricted street during prescribed hours	Higher	£70
2	Parked or loading/unloading in a restricted street where waiting and loading/unloading restrictions are in force	Higher	£70
5	Parked after the expiry of paid for time	Lower	£50
6	Parked without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket or voucher	Lower	£50
7	Parked with payment made to extend the stay beyond initial time	Lower	£50
12	Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place or zone without clearly displaying either a permit or voucher or pay and display ticket issued for that place	Higher	£70
16	Parked in a permit space without displaying a valid permit	Higher	£70
19	Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place or zone displaying an invalid permit, an invalid voucher or an invalid pay & display ticket	Lower	£50
22	Re-parked in the same parking place or zone within one hour [or other specified time] of leaving	Lower	£50
23	Parked in a parking place or area not designated for that class of vehicle	Higher	£70
24	Not parked correctly within the markings of the bay or space	Lower	£50
25	Parked in a loading place during restricted hours without loading	Higher	£70
26	Parked in a special enforcement area more than 50 cm [or other specified distance] from the edge of the carriageway and not within a designated parking place	Higher	£70
27	Parked in a special enforcement area adjacent to a dropped footway.	Higher	£70
30	Parked for longer than permitted	Lower	£50
40	Parked in a designated disabled person's parking place without displaying a valid disabled person's badge in the prescribed manner	Higher	£70
42	Parked in a parking place designated for police vehicles	Higher	£70
45	Parked on a taxi rank	Higher	£70
47	Stopped on a restricted bus stop or stand	Higher	£70
48	Stopped in a restricted area outside a school when prohibited	Higher	£70
49	Parked wholly or partly on a cycle track or lane	Higher	£70
63	Parked with engine running where prohibited	Lower	£50
99	Stopped on a pedestrian crossing or crossing area marked by zigzags	Higher	£70

Off Street Contraventions
CODE	DESCRIPTION	DIFFERENTIAL LEVEL	AMOUNT
70	Parked in a loading area during restricted hours without reasonable excuse	Higher	£70
80	Parked for longer than the maximum period permitted	Lower	£50
81	Parked in a restricted area in a car park	Higher	£70
82	Parked after the expiry of paid for time	Lower	£50
83	Parked in a car park without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket or voucher or parking clock	Lower	£50
85	Parked in a permit bay without clearly displaying a valid permit	Higher	£70
86	Parked beyond the bay markings	Lower	£50
87	Parked in a designated disabled person's parking place without displaying a valid disabled person's badge in the prescribed manner	Higher	£70
89	Vehicle parked exceeds maximum weight or height or length permitted in the area	Higher	£70
90	Re-parked within one hour [or other specified time] of leaving a bay or space in car park	Lower	£50
91	Parked in a car park or area not designated for that class of vehicle	Higher	£70
92	Parked causing an obstruction	Higher	£70
93	Parked in car park when closed	Lower	£50

Click on the link for more details of the contravention codes and our enforcement policy

Representation Grounds

The Traffic Management Act 2004 specifies a number of grounds under which the owner/keeper of the vehicle may make a representation.

Specified Grounds are:

The alleged contravention did not occur
The recipient of the Notice to Owner was never the owner of the vehicle in question; had ceased to be its owner before the date on which the alleged contravention occurred; or became its owner after that date.
The vehicle had been permitted to remain at rest in the place in question by a person who was in control of the vehicle without the consent of the owner.
The recipient is a vehicle-hire firm and: the vehicle in question was at the material time hired from that firm under a vehicle hiring agreement; and the person hiring it had signed a statement of liability acknowledging his liability in respect of any PCN served in respect of any contravention involving the vehicle.
The penalty exceeded the amount applicable in the circumstances of the case.
There has been a procedural impropriety on behalf of the enforcement authority.
The Order which is alleged to have been contravened in relation to the vehicle concerned is invalid.
The Notice should not have been served because the penalty charge had already been paid in full or by the amount reduced by any discount set within the period set.

If your circumstances do not fit one of the above specified grounds you may still explain what happened and the Council will consider your comments. Please enclose any relevant documentary evidence, for instance a delivery note, evidence of a breakdown or evidence of emergency admittance to hospital. Please see our policy on considering penalty charges linked on the right hand side of this page.

Traffic Management Act 2004

Differential Charges

On street Contraventions

Representation Grounds

Off Street Contraventions