Driver threatened with £6k bill after receive 51 fines in a single day

A driver has told of how he received 51 motoring fines in a single day for driving down a road he has permission to use.

John Barrett was warned he faced charges of more than £6,000 after the wrongful fines - accrued over 5 months - all arrived at once earlier this month.

Mr Barrett says the charges - which cost £130 a time - have been issued because his trips to the gym see him drive up a residents-only road.

But the dad-of-three claims that he has a permit which allows his Tesla to use the route without penalty - and the fines have been issued incorrectly.

Mr Barrett says he has had to send individual emails corresponding to each letter from Hounslow Council, who he claims would not accept a blanket response.

He said: "It’s ridiculous, no warning or anything. No letter to say you’ve been caught on camera driving on this road and we don’t think you should be. Not to mention that my permit allows me to use that road.

"The cost to the taxpayer must have been massive - each notice has three screenshots of my car. The time it takes them to print out those screenshots and put the letter in the envelope would cost a fortune.

"All they had to do was put my registration into their computer and they’d see I had a permit. "

Mr Barrett says the traffic system in his area has changed rapidly in the last couple of years and believes errors may have occurred because changes were made too fast and without warning.

He says he was given seven penalties last year for driving to the gym, and replied to each one explaining he had a permit - but never heard back.

Hounslow Council, which issued the fines, blamed the lease company which owns Mr Barrett’s car for the mix-up.

A council spokesperson said: "Restrictions to access on Hartington Road are designed to reduce through traffic on residential roads, thereby improving air quality and safety for pedestrians and cyclists.

"Registered vehicles, belonging to local residents, are prevented from receiving penalty charges by using number plates and addresses which are checked to validate exemption.

"Unfortunately the lease company for Mr Barrett’s vehicle had provided incorrect address details meaning the exemption was not applied and penalty charges became valid.

"All charges have been cancelled."