Latest news with #WarringtonBoroughCouncil
Daily Mail
7 days ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Mother was terrified she'll be dragged to court after over £770 in bus lane fines when taxi was registered at her her address
A mother bombarded with 11 bus lane fines feared she would be dragged into court after a taxi was registered to her home. Shocked Anna Brunskill was horrified when she received a notice from the DVLA on April 23 telling her a vehicle had been registered at her address in Warrington with a name she did not recognise. Since then the 49-year-old has received almost a dozen £70 bus lane penalty notices, racking up to £770 in total. She said nine of these charges were posted to her on the same day of May 15 - despite her having no idea who owns the car now tied to her home address. The marketing manager has already alerted the DVLA and Warrington Borough Council to inform them of the situation. Anna spotted the vehicle appears to have a taxi light on its roof in the photos on the penalty notices. She said there was a chance it was an innocent mistake, as there are two roads with similar names in the area. But she was concerned due to the sudden volume of fines. However, Warrington Borough Council, in Cheshire, confirmed it was a 'genuine mistake'. Describing the debacle, Anna said: 'We suddenly got 11 fines in the post. 'I think that's what raised my suspicions more than anything. 'We don't know this person, we've lived at this address for 14 years and we don't know the car at all. 'That's not very nice, it's a bit worrying especially these days with identity fraud. 'It's definitely alarming and the fact that he only bought this car in April just before we started getting these fines.' When she received the notice that a new vehicle had been registered at her address, confused Anna swiftly rang the DVLA to report this to them. She said they told her they would open a case for her and then on May 8 Anna received the first bus lane fine for the car that had been registered to her address. She said rang the local council, who told her to get an acknowledgement form from the DVLA and send it to them so they could pause the charges. While on the phone with the council, Anna says she was told that there were 10 other penalty charges for the car registered at her address. Two days later she received a huge stack of them through the post. Since then Anna has received confirmation from the DVLA that her address has been removed from their records. Anna said: 'It was worrying. 'I was more worried about the bus lane to be honest and the DVLA bit because I thought, you don't want to not be paying your penalty notices. 'You can get all sorts of things against your name can't you if you don't sort things like that? So that was my main worry. 'You could get a county court judgement against you. 'When you're talking about county court judgements and stuff it can affect your credit history and all sorts. 'It is absolutely irritating, I probably spent about three hours in total speaking to people, being on hold, waiting for people. 'They've all been very helpful to be fair but time out of your working day isn't great.' The DVLA said that any motorist who receives fines or correspondence for a vehicle they do not own should contact Action Fraud, the issuing authority of any fines or penalties and also write to DVLA giving as much information as possible. They said that if the DVLA is made aware of an error on the vehicle record, upon receipt of satisfactory evidence, the Agency will remove the address details from the vehicle record. They explained it is an offence to knowingly provide false information or documents to the DVLA under the Road Traffic Act 1972. A Warrington Borough Council spokesman said: 'Unfortunately, a genuine mistake was made when the taxi driver's vehicle was registered with the DVLA. 'Ms Brunskill's fines for driving in a bus lane have now been cancelled, and no further action will be taken.'
Telegraph
05-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Woman fined £770 after ‘taxi driver' registers at her address
A woman received 11 bus lane fines after a 'taxi driver' registered their vehicle at her address. Anna Brunskill, 49, said she feared she might be taken to court over the fines – despite having no idea who the owner of the vehicle was. The mother of two received a notice from the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Agency (DVLA) on April 23 telling her a vehicle had been registered at her address in Warrington, Cheshire, under a name she did not recognise. She has since received 11 £70 bus lane penalty notices, totalling £770. She said nine of the charges were posted on the same day, and she had alerted the DVLA and Warrington borough council. She added that the vehicle appeared to have a taxi light on its roof in the photos included in the penalty notices. Ms Brunskill acknowledged there was a chance that it was an innocent mistake because there are two roads with similar names in the area. However, she said she felt there was something 'fishy going on' because of the sudden volume of fines, and believed the driver could have deliberately registered his vehicle at her house to avoid paying them. Ms Brunskill said: 'We don't know this person. We've lived at this address for 14 years, and we don't know the car at all. 'If it's not a mistake it's a bit scary really, because how has he got the address? That's what you wonder ... I think it's either innocent, and there is another road [with a similar name] in Warrington, or it could be that he's trying to get away without paying the fines because nobody can trace him. 'Or has he used a local address so that he doesn't get in trouble with the police for not being a local taxi? That was my other thought.' Ms Brunskill has since received confirmation from the DVLA that her address has been removed from its records. The agency said any motorist who receives fines or correspondence for a vehicle they do not own should contact Action Fraud, the authority that deals with fraud and cyber crime, and write to the DVLA giving as much information as possible. The DVLA said that, if it was made aware of an error on the vehicle record, it would remove the address from the vehicle's record upon receipt of satisfactory evidence. It explained that it is an offence to knowingly provide false information or documents to the DVLA under the Road Traffic Act 1972. In the event of any fraud being uncovered, it will liaise with the police and other relevant authorities. Warrington borough council described the charges against Ms Brunskill as a 'genuine mistake' and said that all the fines have been cancelled. A spokesman said: 'Unfortunately, a genuine mistake was made when the taxi driver's vehicle was registered with the DVLA. Ms Brunskill's fines for driving in a bus lane have now been cancelled, and no further action will be taken.'
BBC News
28-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Warrington Council's veteran chief executive to retire
Warrington Borough Council's veteran chief executive is to retire after two separate terms totalling nearly 20 Steven Broomhead will step down at the end of was the local authority's chief executive from 1997 to 2003 and then took up the role again, initially on an interim basis, in leader Hans Mundry said Prof Broomhead had been an "outstanding servant" to the council and the town as a whole. Prof Broomhead was formally appointed for a second time in 2003 to 2010, he was the chief executive of the North West Regional Development said of the retiring chief executive: "He has helped to make Warrington one of the most business-friendly councils in the country, supporting our town's strong growth and regeneration agenda."I know his decision to retire is something he has been considering for some time."I am pleased that Steven will begin to put in place the right foundations as part of our improvement plan following the recent best-value inspection outcome, before taking his well-earned retirement." 'Concerns' Prof Broomhead said: "I have enjoyed my various roles throughout my career, and have always been driven by principles of sustainable development, social justice and social value."Warrington Borough Council has many achievements past and present. The council has supported our town to be a good place to live, have a successful economy, have good community cohesion, and achieve consistently high educational attainment."Warrington Council is set to face government intervention after a report was commissioned by the previous government following concerns about the authority's levels of report, published earlier this month, said Warrington Council was failing to comply with its duties in relation to five areas, including leadership, culture and use of resources. See more Cheshire stories from the BBC and follow BBC North West on X. For more local politics coverage, BBC Politics North West is on BBC One on Sunday at 10:00am and on BBC iPlayer.
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Volunteers find a worn-out lorry tyre in clean-up at Warrington beauty spot
A HERITAGE group has cleared 20 bags of litter from a canal. The New Cut Heritage and Ecology Trail Group held their 10th annual "Big Litter Clean" on Saturday, March 29, along the New Cut Canal, stretching nearly two miles from Paddington Lock to Woolston Lock. More than 20 volunteers participated, starting in early spring weather and ending in cooler winds. They collected about 20 bags of litter, including a worn-out lorry tyre, before the undergrowth becomes denser and hides rubbish. The volunteers also conducted a full litter pick of Paddington Meadows, a popular nature reserve surrounded by footpaths. The event was organised in conjunction with Warrington Borough Council, who arranged for the collection and disposal of the rubbish from the gate on Manchester Road. Local parish councils sponsored much of the high-visibility clothing and tools used on the day. The New Cut Heritage and Ecology Trail Group is known for its dedicated volunteers who regularly organise events to maintain and improve the canal and its surroundings. People interested in joining their friendly work parties, bird and mammal surveys, or litter picks can get in touch via email at info@
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Meet the teenager inspiring Warrington's biggest ever litter pick
A TEENAGER has inspired a huge litter-picking event in Warrington. The One Tonne Challenge created by teenager Thomas Morgan will see volunteers from Warrington collecting over a tonne of litter across the town on Saturday, 29 March. Tarporley High School student Thomas wrote to Professor Steven Broomhead, chief executive of Warrington Borough Council, proposing the litter-picking event. On the day, ten separate litter picks will take place featuring Thomas' One Tonne Challenge. In addition, 16 other litter collections will be held in locations across Warrington throughout the week. All 26 litter picks are being organised by Warrington Litter Volunteers, supporting the national event led by the charity Keep Britain Tidy. During the pandemic, Thomas wrote a letter to the First Sea Lord, Sir Ben Key, challenging the head of the Royal Navy to collect a tonne of plastic waste from the ocean, coastlines and waterways. The Navy exceeded the goal and collected over 2.5 tonnes of waste from around the world, even venturing to Antarctica. This led to Thomas joining the effort at HMS Eaglet in Liverpool in the summer of 2023. Following his success, he now works with local councils and organisations across the country to promote environmental awareness. Most recently, Network Rail, Warrington Council, Shropshire Council, and Wirral Council have all collaborated with Thomas. He also attended the Chester Zoo Youth Summit as an inspirational young changemaker, where he gave a guest talk on his environmental efforts. When asked about where his passion for saving the environment came from, he described watching Octonauts (a children's TV programme) which first introduced him to marine biology when he was a toddler. Thomas's motto is: 'Changing the world, one recycling item at a time.' Thomas said: 'I want to make the challenge bigger and the more people who get involved, the better. 'I would like it to be internationally recognised, with organisations all over the world taking part.' Thomas and his family are looking forward to attending the event to see the support his challenge has received. Co-organiser of Warrington's Great British Spring Clean, Tony Dixon said: 'We've all found the One Tonne Challenge set by Thomas to be really inspirational. 'While we've held similar springtime litter picks in previous years, we're keen to see 2025 hit new heights, in terms of volunteer numbers and the amount of litter collected.' To learn more or to book a place, contact: gbsc2025@ Pre-booking is essential as places need to be reserved for safety reasons.
