Please, do someone of you know what can exactly happen to me To elaborate: just before Christmas I received a PCN for an alleged crossing made around 4pm on 8th December - for a vehicle I'd bought just 5 days earler on 3rd December. The DART signs are NOT clear, why not put up simple signage explaining the toll is NOT free, and payment required. Find a quiet corner and scream very loudly we feel for you! I have never driven through the Dartford crossing as I do not even know where it is!! I live 90% of the time in Germany. Once you get the Penalty Charge Notice, you must send it a challenge to the charges within 28 days or pay the fine . Do I get 14 days notice to pay the forgotten toll payment or is there a LATE PAYMENT FINE already charged against me. Hope it helps They dont tell you in the letter you can pay 2.50 you need to know this. Note: An appeal to an independent adjudicator must be made within 28 days of receiving the rejection letter. Is this still in practise, Id happily pay the fee but not the fine as I tried to PST and couldnt get through. Will I win an appeal on such grounds. Signing up will also extend the time you have to pay from midnight the following day to seven days after using the crossing. Come on England, surely they are other decent ways of collecting money, not an overnight or midnight practice!!! Do you think now I have paid that I should not expect a fine? In my opinion, the system you have implemented is hopelessly flawed and unreasonable, as well as probably being unlawful. Like many here I havent used the Dartford crossing for some time, so when I used it a week last Sunday we had change ready and were constantly looking for signs displaying the various charges, but didnt see any. The signs indicating the crossing are not clear at all, only showing a C sign but providing very little other information. Beat late payment of the Dartford Crossing charge. Give me the hi viz collectors any day of the week. Another dart at dart games to challenge dart charge penalty notice. I have just realised today that I forgot to pay for the crossing of 5 yesterday. Yet another part of UK democracy where they will take your money as quickly as they can and with penalty clauses but, give it back? Last year it was toll booths only going through the tunnel and no payment going over the bridge. Crossed the bridge twice. Not sure explaining will help much, though, if you look at others whove tried to point out the blindingly obvious. Seems like robbery to me. You sign up and it automatically pays the toll then sends you an invoice. I believe this dartford toll system is just a huge government sanctioned extortion scam. Now I shall enjoy wasting my night trying to contact an invisible parasite who was so much easier and slave friendly to locate when paying the charge. Warning: Your session is about to expire due to inactivity. The message tells me access via the website. hi! Hello to you all from a desperate Italian vacationer. You will then be asked to pay the PCN. I do want to pay, but was not aware of the strict timeline and penalties. However, this is best for those who use the crossing on a regular basis, because users have to pay 10.00 to join. What I cannot understand is why people are not standing up for themselves, when there are many points of incompetence and indeed it is an unjust enrichment, for what service are they truly providing? Me.. but Im going on holiday and that will take me over the 14 days cant I just pay now? At least they were civil. If you want online payments you should set up a system that works. We often link to other websites, but we can't be responsible for their content. You should be okay though, with the 14-day grace period covering you for this first offence sorry hate using the word offence when it is clearly a genuine oversight caused by poor signage. I have a slightly different issue, I went through the tunnel on the 19th February but knowing I had to pay I set up an account when I arrived in Essex. when i contacted Dartford call centre and explained they said i owed them money however I have receipts showing that Dartford owes me money, was ment to get a call back but still waiting one week later. As somebody else has commented, the whole system seems designed to trick you into having to pay an extortionate charge. The system is not logical and has many gaps. Reading these comments I am now worried I will receive a load of penalty notices in five months time demanding vast sums of money. The system seems to be extremely clogged. You can pay these online, and if you don't pay within 28 days the cost might increase by 50%. How should I proceed ? Dart charge penalty - Bromptonaut. Any driver hoping to make a note is therefore forced to do so whilst driving, which must surely amount to the commission of a motoring offence (driving without due care and attention). What it does not say is that paying before you get a letter just puts your cash in credit and is not used to pay for crossing. Since I was calling from SPAIN, yes SPAIN, at whatever extortionate amount my provider was charging, the call was probably more than the crossing. If you have a specific vehicle, you register its number and you do not need a Tag. First and only time we made a return trip we forgot to pay. we are a small hire company in Lancashire. The crossing fee will be added to the Penalty Charge Notice. This measured approach strikes the right balance between being clear to drivers they need to pay Dart Charge and giving them every opportunity to do so.. If you appeal within 14 days of receiving the fine and your challenge is rejected, you may only have to pay 50% of the fine. What is a Payzone shop and where to find it? When I asked why would I pay 5.00 for a return trip instead of just 3.00 for a single trip the operator told me that she thought I had just paid them extra!!!!!! Furthermore it still does not counter the basic fact that he paid only slightly late, and before Dart Charge even realised that there had been an unpaid crossing, and therefore there is no reasonable justification for the PCN being issued. as I received too in late their notification!!! Let us know how you get on. Hi, If you are currently exempt from paying the charge, that will still be the case. Saw the signs saying I needed to pay by midnight TONIGHT I went over at 5pm and I returned over the bridge at about 11pm so should be ok for my return journey, I think, as it was after 10pm? I later received a penalty letter. My son used the Dartford Tunnel a few weeks ago. I also paid before getting fined, well you do when you suddenly remember after a holiday!! Because Im an honest person, I preferred to pay with that money I would willingly climbed on the London Eye with the whole family and my daughter and I gave up because London is expensive for an Italian, it annoys me very much have you got that money for a tunnel, I know that now is the next time rather than go through the tunnel spend twice as fuel. Increased to 105.00 if not paid within 28 days. , but my credit card has been debited. Yes, unfortunately the hire companies and leasing companies are also using this money making system to scam you. Not only will these sites leave you out of pocket for the toll, but theyll also leave you facing a fine of up to 105.00 for non-payment. Your customer service representative told me that the PCN system is automated and that I should therefore have received it already. However, its not just the misreading of number plates that causes the problem. I am from Germany. On the crossing there is nothing! Yes its known on the east side of London wider publicity is not available and you need to actively search to find out how the system works. The reasons are as follows: This system even by government standards is pathetic. Like many I remember crossing the bridge last year and had forgotten to pay when I arrived home, but at some point I do remember paying them something, but just couldnt find any evidence I certainly havent received any letters which they have suggested. As a non-UK resident my last journey over the Dartford Crossing was about 15 years ago when a toll system was in operation. Hi Lucy, I am sorry to hear about your experience at the Dartford Crossing you certainly arent alone. I crossed the tunnel on 10th April, and only got a chance to pay online 2.50 now (11th April 2.45am). Arriving at the crossing, youll probably expect to be met by barriers where you can pay a toll and be on your way. She did not understand the toll charge system. Have you seen the section on this article covering a firm called Dartsave? Good luck. would they have put the fee on hold because of the major accident? Using their automated telephone service, I have been told that the money has been taken for the registered crossings I have made. In August my wife who is a Chinese Citizen also resident in China and for whom Mandarin is her first language was caught up in the motorway closures when the M20 was closed when a lorry got stuck under the bridge. Unofficial siteswill simply take your money, pocket the admin charge and pay the outstanding toll on the public Dart Charge site regardless of vehicle details. 4 months later (!!!) Delivery is usually deemed to be 2 working days after the date on the notice. I am getting Penalty notices against my car which has a registration ending U when the pictured vehicle clearly ends in L. Each time I get a notice I have to spend my time and money calling to challenge it. The 14-day grace period is also referenced on the Gov.uk website, so can certainly be taken as official see quote taken from page below. I was away 1/2 weeks ago, should I pay now or await the letter, saying car not found on system? Hi If the penalty was your first offence you should still be offered the opportunity to pay the original 2.50 (if in a car) charge. I would like to complain as I cant agree to pay the penalty. a) There has to be a problem somewhere with a system that is issuing Charge certificates/invoices) whatever you like to call them) when payment has been made. Paid them 7.50 in total and asked for a receipt which they emailed. Will I get charged? LS1 9QF. www.paydartcharge.co.uk appears at the top of the Google search Appearing at the top of Google's search ranking means less online savvy Dartford Crossing users could be paying too much. If this is the first time you have forgotten to pay, then you will get a chance to pay within 14 days of a notice being sent to you. I havent received any kind of notice through the post yet regarding the fine and it has been 12 days if I get a letter, does anyone know if I will still have to pay the fine, or will I then have 14 days to pay the toll as its a first offence? Might be worth looking over bank statements again for the 5. I am at my wits end Pls anyone within advice thanks Kellie. The new system puts the onus on drivers to logon, or call a payment line, to settle their bill by midnight the following day or face a fine of up to 105.00 for each crossing. The Automatic Number Plate Recognition system that triggers a charge against your car has been found wanting when it comes to reading certain letters such as C and G causing incorrect fines to be issued. The first hotel did not provide WiFi and so I was unable to search online. Should I contact them? I already did the same 6 months ago, but because that was the first time I was given the 14 days to pay the original price, without penalty.