Your ticket should be cancelled if a parking meter or machine was broken and there was no other way to pay. It won’t be cancelled if there was another machine you could have used. You’ll need to send evidence that the machine or meter was broken to whoever gave you the ticket. Some car parks and bays have a sign saying not to park there if there's no way to pay. If where you parked had this sign, your appeal is likely to be rejected. You can usually get a discount for paying your ticket early, too, so you might want to do this instead of appealing.

As for appealing, you say you got a fixed penalty so check to see if it was issued by the council or the police. Write to them, clearly explaining why you object – this is called making an informal appeal. Include any evidence you have, because this will give you a greater chance of success. This could be:

- a photo to show road markings or signs were confusing
- a letter from someone who was with you saying what happened – write ‘Witness statement’ at the top of this

Make sure you include:

-the date the ticket was issued
-your address
-your vehicle registration number
-the penalty notice number

You can find more info on the matter at Citizens Advice: www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/parking-t.../