Code 37 PCN Appeal: Failing to Give Way to Oncoming Vehicles

1. What does contravention Code 37 mean?

Code 37 means that your vehicle is alleged to have failed to give priority to traffic coming from the opposite direction. It usually concerns a narrow stretch where vehicles cannot comfortably pass each other and signs tell one approach to give way.

This is a priority restriction, not a ban on using the road. The important question is whether you should have yielded when you proceeded. Review where the oncoming vehicle was, what you could see and how both vehicles moved, rather than relying on a single photograph of your car beyond the sign.

Contravention

Code 37: failing to give way to oncoming vehicles

Typical restriction

A short road narrowing, bridge or traffic-calming feature where one direction must give priority

Main evidence

The priority sign and plate, any give-way line, both vehicles' positions and the complete CCTV sequence

Penalty amount

London borough moving-traffic scheme: £160, reduced to £80 during the initial discount period. England outside London: £60 or £70, reduced to £30 or £35, according to the applicable charging band. Follow the notice for other schemes, Wales and the discount deadline.

Representations

For a London Code 37 PCN, the authority must receive your representation within 28 days of service of the PCN

Appeal route

Formal representations to the issuing authority; after rejection, London Tribunals in London or the Traffic Penalty Tribunal under the relevant schemes elsewhere

2. Which signs apply at a priority narrowing?

Diagram 615 is the red-bordered circular sign with a small red upward arrow on the left and a larger black downward arrow on the right. It tells traffic facing it to give priority to vehicles coming the other way. At the start of the priority section, the accompanying plate says 'Give way to oncoming vehicles', with a distance where appropriate.

The circular sign must have its associated plate. The blue diagram 811A sign faces the opposite approach and tells those drivers that they have priority. The two signs communicate different instructions; a photograph of the blue sign alone does not establish what faced the vehicle receiving the PCN.

A give-way road marking can identify the waiting point but is not compulsory at every narrowing. The triangular upright GIVE WAY sign used at junctions is not the prescribed substitute for diagram 615 at this type of priority section.

3. What must the authority prove?

The evidence must establish the priority instruction facing your approach and the alleged failure to give way. Diagram 615 is enforceable as a traffic sign without an underlying traffic order; the absence of an order alone is not a reason to cancel this allegation.

• The relevant sign and plate: identify what faced the vehicle, where the narrowing began and whether the instruction could be understood from that approach.
• The movement of both vehicles: the recording should show when your vehicle proceeded, where the oncoming vehicle was and its subsequent movement. A short clip starting after entry may omit the disputed decision point.
• The driver's view: compare the elevated camera view with approach photographs. Check foliage, high-sided traffic, sign orientation and the sight line through the narrowing.
• Any give-way line: where one is present, identify the nearer line to the narrowing and both vehicles' positions when it was crossed. Its statutory test concerns likely danger or making the opposing driver change speed or course to avoid an accident.
• Night-time visibility: direct lighting requirements depend on the road speed limit, nearby street lighting and the applicable exceptions. An unlit sign is not automatically defective on every road.
• The notice and liable person: check the registration, recorded journey, allegation and owner or qualifying-hire evidence.

4. Grounds for appealing a Code 37 PCN

Use a ground supported by the recording and documents. A moving oncoming vehicle does not have to collide with yours for a contravention to occur, and saying that nobody stopped is not a complete answer to a failure-to-give-priority allegation.

• The contravention did not occur: use timestamped frames to explain why the oncoming vehicle's position and distance did not require you to wait when you proceeded.
• You had already given way: show the vehicles you allowed through, when you moved and how the next oncoming vehicle approached. Earlier compliance matters only if the later movement was also lawful.
• The sign or plate was missing, obscured or inadequately positioned: provide evidence from your approach at the relevant time, not just a close-up taken beside the sign.
• The recording does not prove the allegation: identify a missing part of the approach, an unseen opposing vehicle or a mismatch between the footage and sign photographs.
• You were not the liable owner, the vehicle was used without consent or a qualifying hire applies: provide the dated documents relevant to that ground.
• The penalty exceeds the amount applicable: compare the amount demanded with the scheme and circumstances on the notice.

5. Exemptions and circumstances that need evidence

The priority sign does not contain a general exemption for residents, deliveries, taxis, motorcycles or Blue Badge holders. A smaller vehicle or a familiar route does not by itself remove the requirement to give way.

Following the vehicle ahead is not an exemption. If a van or bus blocked your view, distinguish a sign that was genuinely hidden from proceeding before you could check for oncoming traffic. The decisions below show why this distinction can change the outcome.

If you rely on a specific legal exception or an instruction given at the scene, identify it and provide the supporting evidence. Urgency, congestion or an unfamiliar route may instead be reasons to ask the authority to exercise discretion. They do not automatically establish a legal ground for cancellation.

6. How to make a formal representation

For a London Code 37 PCN, submit formal representations to the issuing authority using the details on the notice. London Tribunals states they must be received "within 28 days of the date the Penalty Charge Notice is served".

Outside London, use the submission route and deadline on the notice under the applicable English or Welsh scheme.

1. Open the official evidence and challenge portal shown on the PCN. Enter the notice reference and vehicle registration.
2. Watch the complete CCTV. Note the sign, any give-way line, the narrowing and the positions of both vehicles before and after you proceeded.
3. State the ground and explain the specific issue. Attach timestamped frames, dated approach photographs and any owner or hire documents relevant to your case.
4. Identify any missing evidence needed to resolve the point, submit the representation by the deadline and keep the full text, attachments and dated acknowledgement.

7. How long does the authority have to respond?

London Tribunals states that the authority "should normally respond to representations within 3 months".

For formal representations under England's 2022 regulations outside London, the authority must serve its decision within 56 days of receiving them. Welsh Government guidance also states a 56-day response period under the separate Welsh regulations.

8. Check the Notice of Rejection and evidence

The Notice of Rejection should explain the decision and provide the tribunal appeal instructions. Check whether it addresses your actual point: the position of the oncoming vehicle, your view of the sign or the part of the journey missing from the recording.

Compare the sign photograph dates and camera angle with your own evidence. If the authority relies on another vehicle slowing down, examine when and why that happened. If you raised a missing plate or a lighting issue, check the response against the sign and conditions involved.

Record the date of service and the appeal deadline. Keep the PCN, your representation, acknowledgement, rejection and evidence together, then check the tribunal evidence pack for anything new.

9. Taking a Code 37 appeal to the tribunal

For a London PCN, register your appeal with London Tribunals within 28 days beginning with service of the Notice of Rejection. Use its verification details, select the relevant ground and explain how the signs, sight line and vehicle sequence support your case.

Outside London, the Traffic Penalty Tribunal handles the relevant English and Welsh schemes. Use the appeal details in the rejection. Both tribunals are independent and normally charge no appeal fee; if the appeal is refused, the full penalty is normally payable.

Organise your evidence as a short sequence: approach, decision point, opposing vehicle and passage through the narrowing. Previous decisions can illustrate the issue, but the adjudicator must decide your appeal on its own evidence.

2025 London Tribunals Code 37 results

18 of 81 recorded cases were allowed (22.2%).