Why you could be at risk of receiving a motoring fine even if you’re not at fault
More than 1,600 Congestion Charge tickets in London were cancelled last year as the result of car cloning - 50 per cent more than 2016
CAR owners are at risk more than ever of receiving a motoring fine that's not their fault, as the number of cloned cars surges.
The warning comes as newly released Transport for London data showed that 1,652 Congestion Charge fines had to be withdrawn last year after appeals proved owners were victims of car cloning - 50 per cent more than 2016.
This year, the practice - whereby a criminal puts a replica number plate on a similar spec car - continues to rise.
The number of cancelled TfL tickets due to cloning has also risen by a third for the first half of 2018 compared to last year, according to data obtained by Honest John.
However, the autos consumer group describes the figures as a microcosm of a bigger picture - whereby the number of cloned cars, and the penalty charge notices (PCN) they incur, are increasing nationwide.
If car owners receive a fine, they have to prove that the car caught by number-plate reading CCTV is not theirs.
This includes showing evidence of where the genuine car was at the time of the incident - but if the answer to that is on your driveway, it's unlikely that CCTV can prove that if you live on a small residential road.
Other ways in which you can help protect yourself from receiving a clone car's fine is to provide images of your vehicle to show the subtle differences in the two vehicles, if possible.
Honest John advises that this could be on your licence plate should it carry the manufacturer's name or logo - cloned cars often don't include them.
Installing a dash cam will record your car in a different location on the chance that you're driving when the fine took place.
Meanwhile, a GPS tracker will also set your motor apart from a cloned vehicle.
A TfL spokesperson said: "Prior to issuing the PCN we manually verify that the image of the vehicle observed in the zone matches the vehicle information provided by the DVLA.
"Only when there is a match is a penalty issued. At the point of issuing the penalty we would not know if a vehicle had been cloned.
"On receipt of the penalty a motorist can follow the representations and appeals procedure and challenge a PCN. If we receive a representation stating a vehicle has been cloned we request evidence to confirm this."
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Daniel Powell, Honest John Managing Editor, said: "This is just the tip of the iceberg.
"On the grounds that it is down to the car owner to prove they are innocent, it would be safe to assume that the true figure for car cloning in London is significantly higher as many drivers will be unable supply the evidence TfL requires to cancel the PCN.
"For those involved it can be a very frightening and stressful experience, because they will be threatened with crippling fines and court action if they cannot provide comprehensive proof that they were not on the capital's roads.
"It also raises an important question - how many drivers simply pay the fine to avoid the stress?"