Ealing Code 92 PCN Appeal (2026)

1. What does Ealing Code 92 mean?

Code 92 alleges parking so as to cause an obstruction in a council car park. The evidence should identify the obstruction and the condition being enforced, such as interference with access or movement. A photograph should be considered in its full setting, including the space available to pedestrians and other vehicles.

Contravention

Code 92 alleges parking so as to cause an obstruction in a council car park

Category

Council Car Park PCNs

Issuing authority

London Borough of Ealing

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

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

2. What must Ealing establish?

Read the obstruction condition with any access, keep-clear or pedestrian-route notices. A wide photograph should show what passage or movement the council says was affected.

A painted boundary may help explain the layout, but the allegation is obstruction rather than a standard line-marking offence. A complaint from another driver is not the only possible evidence.

• The council must identify the obstruction condition in the applicable parking order and explain how it covers the position alleged.
• The evidence must identify the access or movement obstructed, such as an entrance, pedestrian route or manoeuvring space, in the context of the whole scene.
• The recorded vehicle position and available space must support that obstruction. Being outside a painted bay does not by itself establish the separate Code 92 allegation.
• Any breakdown, emergency or authorised instruction must be assessed against the relevant exception or discretion policy. Remaining in the vehicle does not automatically remove an obstruction.

3. Grounds and exemptions for a Ealing Code 92 appeal

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

Permission to park or unload is not necessarily permission to obstruct access. An engine left running, hazard lights or the driver's presence does not remove an obstruction. Explain a genuine necessity or instruction with evidence.

• The evidence does not establish the alleged obstruction. Request the officer's account and identify the entrance, exit, pedestrian path or manoeuvre said to have been blocked.
• The vehicle or position was recorded incorrectly. Use wider photographs and measurements to compare the actual available space with the council's allegation.
• The order provision did not prohibit the conduct described. Ask the council to identify the relevant condition and explain how the recorded position breached it.
• An unavoidable event or authorised instruction explains the position. Supply the breakdown, emergency or traffic-management evidence and distinguish a relevant exemption from mitigation.
• 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 Ealing

For a parking PCN attached to the vehicle or handed to the driver, send an informal challenge to Ealing. 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 full officer photograph set and notes identifying what was obstructed.
• A plan or measured photographs of access, pedestrian space and the vehicle's position.
• Any recording showing movements into or out of nearby spaces.
• A dated breakdown, emergency or staff-direction record relevant to why the vehicle stopped there.

1. Follow Ealing's official challenge instructions using the link below.
2. Have your vehicle registration and PCN reference ready. Ealing's current instructions accept references beginning EA or AO; use the challenge button on the council page, which links to Ealing's ParkingMax service.
3. Review the evidence before challenging. The council page links to Taranto for windscreen parking-ticket evidence and View My PCN for postal parking-ticket footage.
4. Supporting uploads can be DOCX, PDF, XLSX, TXT, JPEG, GIF or PNG, up to 50MB per document; ZIP files are not accepted.
5. Submit your reasons and supporting evidence in writing, online or by post; telephone calls cannot resolve a PCN challenge. Ealing puts the case on hold when it receives the challenge or representation. Do not pay if you intend to appeal, as payment closes the appeal and case.
6. Explain which part of the Code 92 allegation you dispute. Include the PCN reference, vehicle registration, your address and copies of photographs or records supporting each point.
7. Postal alternative: Ealing Council, Parking services, PO Box 46264, London W5 2UN. Allow time for receipt before the deadline and retain proof of posting.
8. Save the full submission, attachments and dated acknowledgement.

5. How long does Ealing have to respond?

Ealing 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 Ealing rejects your representation

A formal Notice of Rejection explains Ealing'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 92 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 Ealing appeal to London Tribunals

London Tribunals is independent of Ealing. Use the registration instructions and verification details in the Notice of Rejection, upload your evidence and explain why the alleged Code 92 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 Ealing'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

26 of 81 recorded cases were allowed (32.1%).

Full Code 92 PCN Appeal Guide

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