How to Challenge a Code 29 PCN: One-Way Restrictions

What a Code 29 PCN Alleges

Code 29 alleges failure to comply with a one-way restriction. The issue is the direction in which the vehicle travelled along the restricted road. A photograph showing a car facing a particular way is not necessarily a record of how it was driven there.

Challenge the Postal Moving-Traffic PCN

A moving-traffic PCN normally arrives by post with access to the camera evidence. Read the contravention description and legislation together: the code identifies the allegation, but does not by itself identify every procedural rule.

• London, under the London Local Authorities and Transport for London Act 2003: make formal representations to the issuing authority against the PCN. Do not wait for a Notice to Owner or a bus-lane Enforcement Notice.
• England outside London, under the 2022 civil-enforcement regulations: the postal PCN invites formal representations directly. Request the recording promptly and submit your representations within the applicable period even if an evidence request is still outstanding.
• Wales: use the Welsh legislation and representation instructions on the postal PCN. The English 2022 regulations should not be quoted as though they govern a Welsh notice.
• If the authority accepts the representations, it cancels the penalty. A Notice of Rejection explains how to appeal to the independent tribunal; an informal email exchange is not a substitute for that formal decision.

London Tribunals explains the 2003 Act procedure; the Traffic Penalty Tribunal explains the process outside London. A separate guide covers code 34 bus-lane notices, including London's additional Enforcement Notice stage.

Moving-Traffic Representation and Decision Deadlines

For a London 2003 Act PCN, the representation period is 28 days beginning with service of the notice. Its payment period runs from the date of the notice, and the initial discount period is 14 days from that date. These are different starting points; calculate the deadline for the action you are taking.

• England outside London: representations under the 2022 regulations must normally be made within 28 days beginning with service. An approved-device postal PCN has a 21-day discount period beginning with service. Check the notice and any express re-offer of the discount.
• The DfT's statutory guidance for England outside London requires the authority to serve its decision on qualifying representations within 56 days of receiving them. That is not a universal deadline for every email or every UK traffic scheme.
• For London moving-traffic representations, London Tribunals says the authority should normally respond within three months. Do not import the English 2022 statutory 56-day test into a 2003 Act case.
• After a Notice of Rejection, the normal tribunal appeal period is 28 days beginning with service. Keep the notice and submission confirmation so the relevant dates can be established.

Do not assume that asking for CCTV freezes a deadline or that making representations guarantees another discount offer. Use the current notice and any written confirmation from the authority. Welsh notices must be checked against their own regulations and stated dates.

Evidence Showing Your Entry and Direction of Travel

• The complete recording, including the vehicle joining and leaving the restricted section.
• A map marking your approach and photographs of the signs on that approach.
• The one-way order and any temporary traffic order or dated diversion instructions.
• Dashcam footage or a witness account of any authorised traffic direction.

Do not treat an empty road, a very short distance or following another vehicle as permission to drive the wrong way. A challenge should address the direction required, what the recording proves and any applicable exception.

Check the Direction of Travel and the One-Way Restriction

• The footage does not show the alleged movement. Identify the vehicle's starting point and path through the recording; distinguish facing the wrong way from travelling against the restriction.
• The one-way requirement did not cover that road section, time or approach. Compare the signed direction with the traffic order and any temporary change in operation.
• The approach was inadequately signed. Explain where the vehicle joined the road and show the sign visible from that entry, rather than a photograph taken from the other end.
• An actual exception or authorised direction covered the movement. Supply the relevant permission or evidence of an officer directing traffic, not merely a satnav instruction.

A contraflow cycle permission does not permit a car to travel against the one-way system. Check the vehicle class and wording of any exception. If roadworks, an obstruction or an emergency affected the journey, document the facts and distinguish a lawful exception from a request for discretion.

What to Include in a Code 29 Representation

Explain where you entered, which direction you travelled and the precise point you dispute. Refer to recording timestamps and mark the relevant sign on your map. Ask the council to identify the order provision if the extent of the one-way restriction is unclear.

Send the Representations to the Issuing Authority

Use the representation portal or postal address printed on the PCN. Include the reference, vehicle registration, your explanation and the evidence supporting the particular ground. Save the completed text, attachments and dated acknowledgement; a request to view footage is not necessarily registered as representations.

The notice is normally addressed to the person pursued as owner. If you were not the owner at the relevant time, or the vehicle was hired under an agreement that permits liability to be transferred, use the corresponding statutory ground and supporting documents. Simply identifying another driver does not automatically transfer a council PCN.

Appeal a Moving-Traffic Notice of Rejection

Read the authority's reasons alongside the footage and your representations. An appeal goes to London Tribunals for the London scheme, or the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for the relevant English or Welsh scheme. Address the disputed movement, restriction or exemption rather than submitting a different generic appeal.

An allowed appeal cancels the penalty. If it is refused, follow the decision's payment instructions. Ignoring a rejection or decision can lead to a Charge Certificate increasing the penalty by 50%, followed by debt registration and an Order for Recovery. An Order for Recovery has specific procedural remedies; it is not simply another opportunity to repeat the original traffic argument.