Phillip Morton was confused after being informed he had been given a £120 fine for driving in the Clean Air Zone in Birmingham - despite being 'at home in Hampshire' at the time of the incident.
According to Birmingham Live, the 73 year-old got the letter through the post saying he had been caught in Hall Street, in the city centre just before 8.55am on December 10. However, Phillip claims that at that time he was actually preparing to watch his eight-year-old grandson appear in his school nativity play - 145 miles away.
The grandfather-of-five said he is appealing the fine, as: "Surely there's something wrong with the system which is picking up cars which are not even in the city at the time."
Looking at the photographic evidence Phillip also claims that he was shocked to see that the car in question was not his grey Vauxhall Antara but a red Corsa. He believes the camera misread the the letters O and D written on the number plate which led to him getting fined.
The retired bank worker received the PCN on December 31.
He said: "It was on the standard printed form saying that the registration number of my vehicle had been in the zone on December 10 at 8.54am on Hall Street, in Great Hampton Row.
"At first I thought somebody had cloned my car registration but I got on to the council website and when I put in the PCN and registration, I saw it was a red Vauxhall Corsa.
"The photograph they sent really wasn't intelligible, it was black and white and small.
"The camera had read the number plate incorrectly- it's the same registration except for one letter. It had read the 'D' as an 'O'.
"I have submitted my case saying they've got it wrong but looking online there seem to be many other cases where the cameras have not done their job.
"Despite being at home in Hampshire on the day in question I am now required to prove the system is flawed."
Birmingham City Council said: "The council are aware of this case and are responding. If a driver feels they have received a PCN unfairly, they have a right to appeal and can do so via the online form."
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