Woman battles congestion charges

Jacqueline Spring has had demands for four unpaid congestion charges

A woman from Kent is facing a visit from the bailiffs for failing to pay the London congestion charge on a car she no longer owns.

Jacqueline Spring, from Swanley, sold her Mercedes at a car sale in Thurrock last September.

But within weeks of notifying the DVLA of the change in ownership, she received the first of four demands.

She says calls and letters to the firm that runs the scheme have done little to resolve the problem.

Now I've been taken to court, and have court charges Jacqueline Spring

When she received her first penalty notice for an unpaid congestion charge in October, Ms Spring rang Transport for London, which informed her she was still the registered owner of the car.

However, when she rang the DVLA she was told she was not, and that documents would be sent to her supporting that.

She said by the time she received the paperwork, she had received a second demand for another unpaid charge, which was followed by two more.

Transport for London has told her that she does not have to pay for two of the charges.

But it is insisting she pays the others even though Ms Spring has sent the relevant documents proving the car was sold.

"Now I've been taken to court, and have court charges," she said.

Ms Spring said the authorities now know who the new owner of her car is, and that he should be held responsible.

"They want me to pay congestion charges and allow him to get away with it," she said.

She said she was afraid the bailiffs would come knocking at her door for something that was not her fault.

In a statement, Transport for London, which runs the congestion charging scheme, said: "Our operations team is aware of the issue and will be contacting Jacqueline Spring in the near future."