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Streets & Parking

Streets & Parking

Parking Fines and Appeals

Civil Parking Enforcement has recently been introduced in the area. Please visit our CPE FAQs webpage for more information about this change.

Parking tickets issued by the council 

Parking tickets issued by the council are Penalty Charge Notices (PCN). These begin with OI (Oscar India) and are issued for both on-street and off-street parking contraventions by our Civil Enforcement Officers.

How do I pay a PCN?

To make a payment for a PCN, you will need the ticket reference number (Oscar India) and your car registration number.

You can make a payment online using your debit or credit card, or through our Automated Telephone Payment system.

Pay a PCN Online

Our Automated Telephone Payment line number is: 0333 121 4411

When a PCN is issued to the vehicle, you have:

  • 14 days beginning with the date on which the notice is served to pay at a 50% discount, or 

  • 28 days beginning with the date on which the notice is served to pay in full.

Please note that if the PCN is not paid before the end of the 28-day period beginning with the date on which the notice is served, a Notice to Owner (NtO) will be issued.

Please check your fine or any correspondence received to see the value that should be paid, carefully observing the dates, as the amount due will increase if you fail to meet the payment deadlines.

Can I challenge a parking ticket?

Yes, you have a right to challenge a parking ticket and make representations to the council. We have provided more information on Informal Challenges, Representations, and Appeals to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal in the following sections.

When making a challenge or representation to the council, please include any details you feel we may need. You may wish to include supporting documents such as a copy of a valid pay and display ticket, a copy of both sides of a blue badge, or a delivery note.

Please include the PCN number, vehicle registration and contact name and address in all correspondence to prevent possible delays in allocating the challenge to the case.

If you wish to reserve your right to challenge or appeal against the PCN, you should challenge promptly and not pay the penalty charge, as this will result in the case being closed.

After a PCN has been issued, you can make a payment or make an Informal Challenge. The challenge should be made as soon as possible and must be made within 28 days of the PCN issue date. Please do not ignore a PCN issued by the council

We will respond in writing to your Informal Challenge and give notification of either:

  • acceptance of the challenge (the PCN has been cancelled), or

  • rejection of the challenge (the PCN remains payable).

Providing the written challenge was received within 14 days of the PCN being issued, the discounted rate will be restarted if payment is required.

Make an Informal Challenge

If a PCN remains unpaid for 28 days after it was issued, you will be issued a Notice to Owner (NtO). An Informal Challenge can no longer be made.

If you have received a Notice to Owner (NtO), you can make a payment or make representations. Representations should be made as soon as possible and must be made within 28 days of the date of the Notice to Owner. Please do not ignore a PCN issued by the council.

A Notice to Owner is issued to the person the DVLA holds on their records as the registered keeper of the vehicle. The Notice to Owner will contain all the information needed in order to submit a representation.

Make a Representation

After a representation has been received, a written Notice of Acceptance or Rejection will be sent by the council within 56 days.

The Notice of Acceptance will confirm that the representation has been accepted and that the person’s liability for the PCN has been cancelled.

The Notice of Rejection formally rejects the representation and gives reasons why the council have come to this conclusion.

If you are issued a Notice of Rejection, you have 28 days to either pay the PCN or appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. Your Notice of Rejection will include the necessary forms and instructions on how to make an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.

You can’t appeal straight away to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. You may only appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal after your representations to the council have been rejected.

If you have received a Notice of Rejection, you have 28 days to either pay the PCN or appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. Your Notice of Rejection will include the necessary forms and instructions on how to make an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.

Please do not ignore a PCN issued by the council. Failure to pay or challenge a PCN promptly will result in action to recover the penalty charge and increased costs.

You have 28 days beginning with the date on which the notice is served to make payment in full in accordance with the PCN.

If a PCN remains unpaid for 28 days after it was issued, you will be issued a Notice to Owner. The Notice to Owner gives 28 days to make payment or make representations.

  • If there is no payment received or representations made within 28 days, the council will issue a Charge Certificate. The penalty will increase by 50%.

  • If you make representations within the timescales set by the Notice to Owner and are issued a Notice of Rejection, you have 28 days to either pay the PCN or appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.  If there is no payment received or appeal made within 28 days, the council will issue a Charge Certificate. The penalty will increase by 50%.

A Charge Certificate increases the penalty by 50%. If the Charge Certificate is not paid within 14 days, the Council may register the Charge Certificate at the Traffic Enforcement Centre at Northampton County Court, which will issue an Order for Recovery. 

An Order for Recovery is a notice issued by the Traffic Enforcement Centre at the Northampton County Court to the Registered Keeper of the vehicle (special rules that apply to the enforcement of a PCN in relation to a hire / lease vehicle) informing them that a PCN associated with that vehicle has been registered as a debt. A fee covering the debt registration is added to the penalty owed. An Order for Recovery details how the outstanding amount should be paid, and by what date.

If neither the outstanding amount is paid nor a Witness Statement is sent to the Traffic Enforcement Centre, a Civil Enforcement Agent will be contacted to recover the money owed. 

Reasonable adjustments

Parking fine challenges must be made in writing. Verbal decisions cannot, and will not, be given.

If you have a disability and require reasonable adjustments to appeal a parking fine, please call our customer services team on 01480 388388.

Alternatively, you can email us at: carparkingappeals@huntingdonshire.gov.uk.

When you contact us, please tell us that you have a parking fine and need reasonable adjustments to make a challenge. Please include the PCN number, vehicle registration and contact name and address in all communication to prevent possible delays.

Please make sure you provide the ticket reference number and your contact information so we can get back in touch with you to discuss your requirements.