Barnet Code 43 PCN Appeal (2026)

1. What does Barnet Code 43 mean?

Code 43 concerns stopping on a parking place designated for a cycle docking station. It protects the space used by cycle-hire facilities, including the designated area around the docking equipment. The physical position and legal extent of that place matter; being near a hire bicycle or docking point is not the same as being within it.

Contravention

Code 43 concerns stopping on a parking place designated for a cycle docking station

Category

On-Street Parking PCNs

Issuing authority

London Borough of Barnet

Formal representation deadline

28 days beginning with service of the Notice to Owner or postal parking PCN.

Penalty and discount

Use the charge and discount printed on your PCN; the applicable amount depends on the notice and contravention date.

Initial discount

The initial 50% discount applies for 14 days beginning with PCN service, or 21 days for an approved-device postal parking PCN. An early challenge may lead to a renewed discount if rejected; check the council's policy and the amount and deadline in its reply.

Appeal route

Barnet, then London Tribunals after a formal Notice of Rejection.

2. What must Barnet establish?

Capture the docking equipment, any reservation signs or markings, and the vehicle position together. Compare the visible layout with the designated parking-place boundary.

A cycle docking space is not the same restriction as a cycle lane or track. A nearby cycle symbol alone does not establish the docking station's extent.

• The authority must identify a parking place designated for the cycle docking station, including the extent of the reserved area.
• The evidence must show the vehicle stopped within that place. Being next to a hire bicycle or docking terminal does not establish the position.
• The designation and visible layout must support the area alleged. An adjacent ordinary parking space must not be treated as part of the station without that basis.
• Any servicing, maintenance or emergency permission must cover this stop. Empty docks or an out-of-service terminal do not themselves release the space for general use.

3. Grounds and exemptions for a Barnet Code 43 appeal

The statutory ground must match what happened. These code-specific points explain how to establish it.

A dock without bicycles can remain reserved. General parking payment, a Blue Badge or a brief passenger drop-off does not itself remove the no-stopping restriction. Necessary maintenance or emergency use must be supported by the applicable permission or exception.

• The vehicle was outside the designated parking place. Use photographs showing the vehicle, docking equipment and the marked or defined boundary.
• The authority has identified the wrong location or registration. Compare the PCN with the complete observation or camera sequence, not just a cropped image.
• The docking place's designation or signing did not cover the area alleged. Ask for the relevant parking-place provision and explain the mismatch with the visible layout.
• Express permission for maintenance, servicing or another necessary use covered the vehicle, or the stop was unavoidable. Provide the instruction and timing; an ordinary delivery nearby is not the same as authorised station servicing.
• The alleged parking contravention did not happen, including where a relevant exemption applied or the restriction was not adequately signed.
• You were not the owner at the relevant time: you never owned the vehicle, sold it before the event or acquired it afterwards.
• The vehicle was under someone else's control without the owner's consent at the time of the alleged contravention.
• You are a vehicle-hire firm and the vehicle was hired under a qualifying agreement with a signed statement accepting PCN liability. Supply the hirer's name and address.
• The authority is demanding more than the penalty legally applicable to this case.
• The authority failed to comply with a statutory requirement in imposing or recovering the penalty: a procedural impropriety.
• The traffic order relied on is invalid, except an order subject to Part 6 of Schedule 9 to the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.
• For a postal PCN relying on prevented service or a qualifying drive-away under regulation 10(2)(b) or (c), nobody prevented the officer from attaching or handing over the PCN. This is not the ground for an approved-device postal PCN.
• The enforcement notice should not have been served because the penalty was already paid in full, or at the valid discounted amount by the applicable deadline. Paying a parking tariff is different from paying the penalty.

4. How to make a formal representation to Barnet

For a parking PCN attached to the vehicle or handed to the driver, send an informal challenge to Barnet. Formal representations are made against the Notice to Owner, or directly against a postal parking PCN, within 28 days beginning with service. Respond to the formal notice even if an earlier informal challenge is unanswered.

The initial 50% discount applies for 14 days beginning with PCN service, or 21 days for an approved-device postal parking PCN. An early challenge may lead to a renewed discount if rejected; check the council's policy and the amount and deadline in its reply.

• Wide photographs showing the docking station and vehicle together.
• The council's observation sequence and exact location.
• The designation or layout defining the cycle-hire parking place.
• Work instructions, servicing authorisation or an unavoidable-event timeline.

1. Follow Barnet's official challenge instructions using the link below.
2. Use the Challenge a PCN link on Barnet's instructions page, or write to Barnet Parking Services. Include your PCN number, vehicle registration, full address and supporting photographs or other evidence.
3. Barnet's evidence viewer requires the PCN number, vehicle registration and web code. Its guidance asks you to allow 24 hours for images to appear and limits footage access to the named person or an authorised representative.
4. Formal representations require the unique web code on the notice. For relevant notices dated before 1 November 2025 without a code, Barnet directs motorists to call 0333 200 7380. Do not pay a PCN you intend to contest: payment closes the case.
5. Explain which part of the Code 43 allegation you dispute. Include the PCN reference, vehicle registration, your address and copies of photographs or records supporting each point.
6. Postal alternative: Barnet Parking Services, PO Box 5772, DINGWALL, IV15 0BD. Allow time for receipt before the deadline and retain proof of posting.
7. Save the full submission, attachments and dated acknowledgement.

5. How long does Barnet have to respond?

Barnet must serve its decision within 56 days beginning with receipt of qualifying formal representations. If it fails to comply, those representations are deemed accepted. This statutory period applies to formal representations, not an informal challenge or a request for photographs.

6. If Barnet rejects your representation

A formal Notice of Rejection explains Barnet's decision and how to appeal to London Tribunals. You have 28 days beginning with service of that notice to pay or register your tribunal appeal.

Compare the reply with the Code 43 grounds and evidence you submitted. Identify any unanswered point, missing evidence or inconsistency between the restriction and the recorded event. Keep the rejection notice and the appeal details supplied with it.

An informal rejection is different: formal representations can be made if a Notice to Owner follows.

7. Taking your Barnet appeal to London Tribunals

London Tribunals is independent of Barnet. Use the registration instructions and verification details in the Notice of Rejection, upload your evidence and explain why the alleged Code 43 contravention or liability is disputed.

There is no fee to register the appeal. If it is refused, the full penalty is normally payable; an earlier discount does not automatically continue. If registering late, explain the delay so the adjudicator can decide whether to accept the appeal.

Read Barnet's evidence pack and respond to the points relevant to your case. Keep to the tribunal's directions and evidence deadlines.

2025 London Tribunals results: shared context

4,151 of 13,391 recorded cases were allowed (31.0%).

Full Code 43 PCN Appeal Guide

Read the detailed legislation, signage requirements, exemptions and case analysis for this contravention.