Puzzle 10 of 10

Can a council PCN tell you to appeal to POPLA?

Spot the mistake in 3 seconds: this council letter sends you to the wrong appeals service.

SPECIMEN. A fictional London council Notice to Owner dated 26 October 2026 that names POPLA as the appeal body. — SPECIMEN. Fictional notice made for a puzzle. Not a real charge, operator or council. The notice is shortened to the lines that matter. The mistake is in a line you can see, or is missing from one of them.

Read the notice as text

Heading: NOTICE TO OWNER
From: London Borough of Exampleton (fictional)
Date of notice: Mon 26 Oct 2026 (date posted)
Vehicle: AB12 IDE
Penalty charge notice: Issued Mon 21 Sep 2026, Exampleton Road, £130, unpaid
Representations: You may make representations to the council within 28 days of the date this notice is served.
If rejected: If we reject your representations, you may appeal to POPLA (Parking on Private Land Appeals).
How to pay: Online, by phone or by post, details overleaf

What is wrong with it?

Tap the one you think is the mistake.

The £130 charge
Not this one. Try another.
The 28-day representations period
Not this one. Try another.
The appeal body it names
Yes, that is the mistake.
It came after the PCN went unpaid
Not this one. Try another.

Show the answer

The mistake: The appeal body it names

POPLA handles appeals against private car park companies. It has no say over a council ticket. The 2022 appeal regulations require a Notice to Owner to tell you that you can appeal to an adjudicator if the council turns down your representations. For a London council those adjudicators sit at London Tribunals, and outside London at the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. A notice that points you to the wrong body could send your appeal somewhere that cannot hear it while your deadline runs. Make representations to the council by 24 November and name the misdirection as a procedural impropriety.

The rule it breaks

that the recipient may appeal to an adjudicator against any decision of the enforcement authority not to accept representations

The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representations and Appeals) (England) Regulations 2022 (SI 2022/576), Regulation 3(2)(e), read 19 October 2026; quoted word for word.

The dates, worked out

PCN issued	Mon 21 Sep 2026; its 28 days ended Sun 18 Oct 2026
Notice to Owner posted	Mon 26 Oct 2026
Served	Wed 28 Oct 2026 (2nd working day after posting)
Representations deadline	28 days beginning Wed 28 Oct 2026 end Tue 24 Nov 2026