Address distress

In 2007 my son was photographed stationary in a yellow box junction. A couple weeks ago his business van was clamped and the Bailiffs sent round to impound his car for non-payment of a fine £60, now increased over two years to £750. On phoning TFL we discovered they had sent the notifications to the wrong address, to 29 not 49. My son was instructed to pay the £750 fine and to fill out a form to claim back the money later from TFL. Another suggestion from TFL was to fax a copy of his logbook to them as proof of his address, a logbook located 3 miles away and while his van was being loaded onto a tow truck. It took at least 3 calls to TFL to find someone willing to help. If the van was taken to the Pound he would have had to pay £1,100 to have it released. Eventually a helpful individual at TFL phoned the DVLA who confirmed the address TFL had for the van was incorrect. Following a considerable delay the Bailiffs were called off and my son's van released. However, in the meantime a morning's work was lost. You would have thought after numerous notices being sent out and paying for a Court to issue a Warrant, someone at TFL might have thought it wise to check they had the correct details. The DVLA supplied TFL with the name of my son's company and it would be easy enough to check its legitimacy on the Internet against numerous advertisements for his services. But no, push on and when a mistake is made by TFL or the DVLA apologise and offer nothing in the way of compensation for lost business - all very one sided don't you think? What would you advise in such circumstances? Who should I pursue in this matter - if anyone? Best regards and somewhat annoyed

Asked on 22 August 2009 by

Answered by Honest John
This is another example of the disgraceful state our county has sunk
into, where people are punished for the mistakes of the authorities that seek to penalise them. Yes, of course your son needs to sue TFL for his lost morning's work as a result of TFL's bullying incompetence. Use the small claims track at the county court. I know you have been fed a long spiel of excuses by the court service, but wherever TFL got its incorrect information is irrelevant. The information was wrong and TFL penalised you for that. It cannot be allowed to get away with this and I think a Small Claims Track judge will agree.
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