Bailiff letters issued over CAZ charge typo

Birmingham City Council has since waived the fees as a gesture of goodwill

An elderly man received bailiff letters over unpaid Clean Air Zone penalty charge notices, due to a typo.

Bryce Jennings, 79, thought he had correctly paid the £8 daily charge to enter Birmingham's low emission zone and so did not pay his fines.

The city council instructed an enforcement firm to collect the debt from the 79-year-old four months later - with a new total of more than £1,000.

The council has since agreed to waive the enforcement fees as a gesture of goodwill after intervention by the BBC brought a typo in the car's registration to light.

Mr Jennings, a retired grounds-worker, entered Birmingham's low emission zone several times in December 2023 and had paid the £8 daily charge for each visit within 48 hours.

When he received four £120 penalty charge notices from the council for 8, 18, 20 and 21 December his son, Victor Jennings, contacted the council's CAZ helpline to let them know he had paid.

The council later made the referral to Jacobs Enforcement to collect the debt, which was increasing.

The Erdington resident received the bailiffs letters between 29 April and 1 May and was shocked to see the cost had risen to £1,056 in total.

When the BBC contacted the council to look into the matter, its parking enforcement team discovered Mr Jennings had made a typo of one letter when he had entered his registration plate into the payment form.

Birmingham City Council agreed to waive the enforcement fees as a gesture of good will to the family.

His son said: "We're just so relieved everything has been straightened out and want to say thank you to the council."

Bryce Jennings received four bailiff letters four months after his visit into the city

A spokesperson for the council said it is the responsibility of the registered keeper of the vehicle to ensure that "all details, including the vehicle registration, are entered correctly during payment".