Nearly every parking ticket issued in the London, UK borough of Barnet over the past several years has lacked specific information required by law, rendering the citations invalid. On Saturday, the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service ruled that a pair of £80 (US $139) tickets handed to Hugh Moses violated the requirements of the Road Traffic Act of 1991. As a result of this precedent, hundreds of thousands of motorists could demand refunds for the £5 million (US $8.7 million) in tickets that Barnet Council collected annually.

Adjudicator Timothy Thorne ruled that, "I am satisfied that the PCN issued to Mr Moses in this case is invalidated by its failure to specify the date of issue (as opposed to its contravention)."

"It's a legal precedent and a victory for the motorist against the unbelievable arrogance of local authorities in dealing with parking tickets," Barrie Segal, a parking ticket activist who helped Moses win his case, told This is Local London. "They are absolutely entitled to a refund and people have to make the decision of whether they are going to fight it or knuckle under it only takes a letter or an email to appeal. This has given them the power to ask for their money back."

Barnet Council is considering an appeal of the decision. (Photo credit: Peter Beal, Hendon Times Group, London)