What happens if you do not pay your PCN

If you do not pay your PCN, the following happens:  

1. If you ignore a PCN and any ‘notice to owner’ (for on-street parking offences) or ‘enforcement notice’ (for bus lane contraventions), you are sent a ‘charge certificate’ letter letting you know the cost of the PCN has increased by 50%. 
2. If you do not pay the increased charge within 14 days, we tell the Traffic and Enforcement Centre and they register the amount you owe as a debt. We send you an ‘order of recovery’ letter. 
3. If the PCN remains unpaid for 21 days after registering the debt, a ‘warrant of control’ is issued.  
4. The case is then passed to an enforcement agent (previously known as a bailiff) to recover what you owe. See Citizen’s Advice for information on dealing with enforcement officers (bailiffs).
5. The enforcement agent writes to you or visits you within 14 whole days to serve a ‘notice of enforcement’. This notice tells you the amount you owe plus any fees. 
6. If an ‘out of time witness statement’ or ‘statutory declaration' is not made or you do not pay the money you owe, an enforcement agent visits you to recover the amount you owe. See the Bailiff Advice Online website for information on ‘out of time witness statements’ and ‘statutory declarations’. 
7. An enforcement agent can take away your items to sell to recover the money you owe. They cannot take away heating or cooking items. The enforcement agent fee of £235 is payable from the first time they visit.  
8. Your items are sold to pay the money and fees you owe. The enforcement officer must: 
   • sell your vehicle for the best price 
   • remove your vehicle carefully 
   • not sell the item for 7 full days after removing it 

Fees charged by the enforcement agent

The fees an enforcement agent can charge are outlined under the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014. They are: 

• compliance fee – £75 
• enforcement fee – £235 (plus 7.5% if you owe more than £1,500) 
• fee for selling your goods – £110 (plus 7.5% if you owe more than £1,500)  

Vulnerable residents 

We make special efforts to be sensitive to our vulnerable residents. 

If you’re a vulnerable person having difficulty paying your PCN, please write to us letting us know your situation as soon as possible. 

Contacting an enforcement agent 

Enforcement agents must be trained to identify vulnerable debtors and deal with the situation appropriately. This is set out in part 3 of the Tribunal, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. 

If you’re contacted by an enforcement agent and are a vulnerable person, contact the agent named on the ‘Warrant of control’ you receive. 

Our enforcement officers are from CDER. You can contact them by phone.