City of London Code 71 PCN Appeal (2026)

1. What does City of London Code 71 mean?

Code 71 concerns an off-street electric-vehicle charging place used during restricted hours without charging. Owning an electric vehicle, connecting a cable and actually charging are not necessarily the same thing. The bay's order and displayed conditions define what was required.

Contravention

Code 71 concerns an off-street electric-vehicle charging place used during restricted hours without charging

Category

Council Car Park PCNs

Issuing authority

City of London Corporation

Formal representation deadline

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

Penalty and discount

£160 higher level / £110 lower level. Standard parking penalties shown on the City of London's Parking tickets page, updated 10 July 2026: higher-level and lower-level parking contraventions. Not a moving-traffic tariff or a statement of the amount due on older notices.

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

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

2. What must City of London establish?

Compare the bay notice with the charger instructions. Identify what they say about charging, remaining after a session ends and paying any separate parking charge.

Show the bay number, charger identifier and notice in the photographs. Do not substitute the standard on-street electric-vehicle sign wording for the conditions actually imposed in this car park.

• The parking-places order and bay conditions must require charging in the occupied space during the hours alleged, not merely identify an electric-vehicle parking area.
• The displayed instructions should explain the required charging activity and any session or stay limit. Charging fees and parking fees may be separate.
• The evidence must address whether the charging condition was met at the PCN time. A connected cable or an electric-vehicle badge does not settle that question.
• A charger fault, interrupted session or permission must be assessed against this bay's conditions. Check the session log and fault timeline before claiming an exception.

3. Grounds and exemptions for a City of London Code 71 appeal

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

A Blue Badge or parking permit does not automatically excuse a charging condition. Charging fees and parking fees can also be separate: Dorset's published policy requires parking payment while using its car-park charging bays, whereas other councils offer different concessions. Check this site's terms.

• A charging session was active at the PCN time. Obtain the provider's session log, charger identifier and start and end times, not only a photograph of the connected cable.
• The restriction was not operating or the vehicle occupied a different bay. Match the bay number, sign, hours and officer photographs.
• A charger failure interrupted a genuine attempt to charge. Preserve the fault message and report reference, explain when it was discovered and what you did next. A fault is evidence for the actual exception or discretion sought, not automatic permission to remain indefinitely.
• The council applied a charging condition different from the one displayed. Compare any requirement for connection, active charging, maximum stay or departure after charging with the order and instructions.
• 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 City of London

For a parking PCN attached to the vehicle or handed to the driver, send an informal challenge to City of London. 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.

• The provider's session history identifying charger, vehicle or account, times and charging activity.
• The bay sign, charger instructions and photographs showing where the vehicle stood.
• A dated fault screenshot and charging-provider support or maintenance record.
• The parking receipt and any applicable concession, kept separate from the charging payment.

1. Open City of London's PCN service below. Enter the PCN reference (prefix CL) and vehicle registration to find the notice and evidence.
2. Use the City of London's council-linked portal to view the photographs or footage and challenge the ticket. The portal asks for a PCN number starting CL and your vehicle registration.
3. Include the ticket number, vehicle registration, your name and address, a detailed explanation and supporting evidence. Read the document you received carefully because the available grounds depend on the notice.
4. Submit the challenge through the portal rather than relying on a telephone enquiry: the City says its advice-line staff cannot decide challenges over the phone.
5. Explain which part of the Code 71 allegation you dispute. Include the PCN reference, vehicle registration, your address and copies of photographs or records supporting each point.
6. Save the full submission, attachments and dated acknowledgement.

5. How long does City of London have to respond?

City of London 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 City of London rejects your representation

A formal Notice of Rejection explains City of London'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 71 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 City of London appeal to London Tribunals

London Tribunals is independent of City of London. Use the registration instructions and verification details in the Notice of Rejection, upload your evidence and explain why the alleged Code 71 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 City of London'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

23 of 74 recorded cases were allowed (31.1%).

Full Code 71 PCN Appeal Guide

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