East Suffolk Council
Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs)
Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) are issued when a vehicle is observed parked in contravention of either on-street or off-street parking regulations. These are more commonly referred to as parking fines or parking tickets.
If you receive a PCN, you have two options:
| If you accept the PCN has been issued correctly and do not wish to appeal |
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| If you believe the PCN has been issued in error or have valid reasons for the council to reconsider |
What happens if you do nothing
Under Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) legislation, the registered keeper of the vehicle is liable for the PCN, even if they were not the driver at the time.
If the PCN remains unpaid or unchallenged, East Suffolk Council will request the registered keeper’s details from the DVLA and issue a Notice to Owner (NtO) by post.
If the NtO is ignored, the case will progress to Charge Certificate, increasing the penalty by 50%. At this point, you can no longer appeal.
Continued non-payment allows the council to apply to the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) for a Warrant of Control, enabling Enforcement Agents (Bailiffs) to recover the debt. Additional fees may be added by the Enforcement Agent in line with legislation.
Please note: The Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) is part of Northampton County Court that processes unpaid PCNs for local authorities and enforcement bodies across England and Wales. PCN-related cases are therefore processed administratively and are not heard in court.
Payment plans / Instalments
East Suffolk Council does not offer payment plans or instalments.
Parking enforcement operates under the Traffic Management Act 2004 which requires full payment within specific timeframes. It does not allow for payments to be spread out over a longer period.
We understand that some motorists may wish to pay in instalments, but legislation only permits payment within the stated deadlines.
