Bridge told it crossed line over O-zero plate fine

The Humber Bridge Board has been told it should not have fined a motorist whose registration details mistakenly included Os instead of zeroes.

Tony Hughes, 79, from Branston, Lincolnshire, received two fines, of £27, for crossing the bridge on June 22. He claims the error was made by a till operator inputting his details at a store that used a PayPoint service to pre-pay for his journey.

The RAC said there was no justification for the fines and called on the bridge operator to "look at its processes to ensure others don't get caught out".

The bridge board quashed the fine on appeal and said it could see there had been an "honest mistake".

A bridge board spokesperson added: "In the small number of cases where people have made an honest mistake, we have considered their case in detail and waived the admin fees completely, and we will continue to do this."

Hughes said he always said zero and never O when saying his private registration plate, which begins Y700, to avoid confusion.

"I use the phonetic alphabet - Y for Yankee, seven double zero," he said. "Even if we're registering at a hotel, I always do it, it's a habit."

In a letter from the bridge board, confirming the cancellation of the fines, it said: "Going forward, when purchasing guest crossings, I would recommend checking the PayPoint cashier is entering your registration number correctly."

The RAC said fines in these instances should not be issued.

Senior policy officer Rod Dennis said: "The difference between a zero and a letter O shouldn't make any difference, and the DVLA has previously said there is no legal distinction between the two characters.

"It's frustrating for drivers to have to spend their own time challenging penalties like this and we call on the Humber Bridge authority to look at its processes to ensure others don't get caught out."

According to the British Parking Association code of conduct, a keying error is when a vehicle's registration details are entered incorrectly into a pay and display machine, validation terminal or online payment system.

In these cases, it said parking firms should cancel the charge if the motorist appeals.

Hughes lodged an appeal and said he felt "a little bit miffed about the situation". However, after contacting the BBC, he said he received a successful appeal letter.

"As an older person I often feel that our generation aren't particularly au-fait with a lot of modern technology," he added.

"In this particular situation, rather than do it online, I feel that you need to see a person face-to-face. The only thing I will do next time is make sure they've put the zeroes in and not the letter O."

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