How much will it cost to appeal?

There are no fees or charges involved in submitting an appeal to the tribunal.

The appeals procedure is designed to be free and not to discourage people from appealing through fear of paying costs and charges.

Please note however that in the large majority of cases, any expenses you incur such as travelling to the hearing centre, taking time off work, gathering evidence and any administrative costs such as postage and telephone calls will usually not be paid back to you even if your appeal is successful.

If you lose your appeal, you will be liable to pay only the amount of the Penalty Charge Notice as directed by the adjudicator. You will not usually be liable to pay your opponent’s costs.

Can I claim back my expenses?

The adjudicator has no power to award compensation for any distress or anxiety arising from a person receiving a Penalty Charge Notice.

In the very large majority of cases, the adjudicator will not order costs or expenses to be paid by Transport for London to an appellant who wins a case. Similarly, the adjudicator will not order an appellant who loses a case to pay costs to Transport for London.

Costs and expenses may only be awarded by the adjudicator in very rare circumstances if the adjudicator determines that you or Transport for London has acted ‘frivolously’, ‘vexatiously’ or ‘wholly unreasonably’ in bringing or contesting the appeal.

The appeals procedure is designed to be free and not to discourage people from appealing through fear of paying costs and charges.  

If you wish to make an application for costs, you must write to us promptly, setting out why you think an award should be made and providing details of the costs you have incurred. Your application for costs will then be referred to the adjudicator for a decision.

View an example of how to make a costs application.