A Labour-run authority has revealed it unlawfully issued penalty notices to more than 10,000 motorists who used bus lanes, with the fines totalling £485,220.
Southwark Council acknowledged that administrative errors led to incorrect legal references appearing on thousands of tickets issued over a four-month period.
The blunder affects 10,422 penalty charge notices distributed between February and June this year, after officials mistakenly used an improper template when preparing the documentation.
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This marks the latest in a series of enforcement mishaps for the south London borough, which was forced to reimburse drivers £120,000 for penalties related to a bus lane in Rotherhithe that lacked proper legal authorisation earlier this year.
Thousands of drivers could be reimbursed for a clerical blunder by Southwark Council
|GETTY
The council has pledged full reimbursement to affected motorists, with the financial burden falling entirely on its contractors rather than taxpayers.
It discovered the mistake after using an incorrect template that was mistakenly applied to bus lane penalty notices, according to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information request.
The error meant that wrong legislation was cited on the 34J penalty charge notices, rendering them legally invalid.
Phillip Morgan, who assists drivers with penalty appeals through the Free Traffic Legal Advice forum, identified the fault and submitted the data request that exposed the scale of the problem.
Incorrect bus lane fines handed out by Southwark Council totalled almost £500,000
| GETTY"In all of my experience, this is one of the worst examples of administrative incompetence I have ever encountered," he said.
Mr Morgan revealed that he had alerted the council to the issue in April, but officials initially dismissed his concerns, claiming he was "mistaken about the error". The council later chose not to defend a case at the tribunal.
The Rotherhithe bus lane debacle occurred in January when the council had to return £120,000 to drivers after discovering the Traffic Management Order had lapsed in May 2024, making the lane legally unenforceable for half a year.
Additionally, a 2024 tribunal identified "procedural impropriety" in some of the authority's penalty notices, which incorrectly stated when the 28-day appeal period commenced.
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The notices wrongly indicated the deadline began from "the date the penalty charge notice was served" rather than "the date of notice" as legally required.
Mr Morgan expressed frustration at the council's handling of the situation, saying: "The question must be asked: how much do Southwark council tax payers pay for this incompetence and how much does it cost to send out by post faulty tickets and equally faulty notices of rejection?"
Local councillor James McAsh acknowledged the administrative failure and confirmed that every affected driver would receive reimbursement.
The Cabinet Member for Clean Air, Streets and Waste at Southwark Council also confirmed that any outstanding notices would be voided.
Motorists are expected to get their money back over the next month
| GETTYHe added: "Between February and June this year, an administrative error by one of our contractors led to some bus lane penalty notices being issued incorrectly. We are very sorry for the inconvenience this has caused."
The council has examined all other penalty notices and identified no additional problems, Mr McAsh stated.
A council representative emphasised that taxpayers would bear no financial impact, as the contractor responsible for the mistake had committed to covering all refund expenses.
Automatic reimbursements will be processed to affected accounts within the coming month.