In April of this year we were on a month-long trip to Australia and had a friend staying in our flat. One morning we got a distressed call from her to say bailiffs had put a seizure notice through our door demanding £513 on behalf of Hammersmith & Fulham council. They were threatening to tow away our car if we did not pay up, which we did.
Once back home I called the council, which said we’d stopped in a yellow box junction. However, we hadn’t received any correspondence about it. I asked the parking officer what address they’d sent the notices to, and he said they had gone to number 285a in our road, when we live at 258a. They had also used an incorrect postcode. Council staff agreed that there had been a mistake but wouldn’t refund the money.
I have sent the documentation to prove that our V5 certificate was correctly registered. The council replied 10 weeks later, totally misunderstanding the problem. Since then I have been locked in an infuriating dispute. They have repeatedly suggested that our V5 certificate was incorrectly registered despite my repeatedly having shown that it was not. They have now said that there was nothing they could do to resolve the matter and we would have to go to court if we wanted our money back, which is madness. JM, London
You have been treated appallingly, but I am happy to report the council quickly responded after we raised your case. The council has placed the blame for this fiasco with the bailiffs. It says they attended the wrong address – ie, not the one on the court order but your actual address, as if that makes any sense.
At the council’s request, the money was quickly returned to your account and the matter is now over. The original infringement – entering the box – has also been dropped. It is shocking that the council refused to sort this out until we got involved.
We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number
