A THURROCK businessman is raging over a borough council attempt to penalise his business for putting an advertising board on a pavement – three years on from the authority admitting it had got it wrong with a first failed prosecution!

Blair Lloyd-Warne runs the Planet Plume vape shop and lounge on The Green in Stanford-le-Hope.

Four years ago, he received a fixed penalty notice for using an A-board outside his shop but contested it and Thurrock Council conceded he was not in breach of any rules and rescinded the ticket. Mr Lloyd-Warne says he was not told not to continue using the board but recently, after years of using the board without intervention, he received a second ticket - which he has not paid. And he says he will not pay.

Now the council is trying to enforce it again and threatening him with court action to claim a £150 fine - a potential court action which the businessman says he welcomes with open arms!.

And he has won the support of a local councillor who says the authority is employing double standards, trying to persecute shopkeepers while ignoring flagrant breaches of local laws by a car sales company that parks and advertises its vehicles around the town centre's parking places.

Mr Lloyd-Warne told Thurrock Nub nNews: "This is the second time that Thurrock Council have raised the issue of our advertising board since we opened our business more than four years ago. On the first occasion the Thurrock Council cancelled our fixed penalty notice but never advised us to remove the advertising board after doing so, therefore I feel that trying to enforce a FPN on this occasion, years later is wholly unacceptable.

"Had Thurrock Council wanted our advertising board removed they should have instructed us to do so when we were in dialogue about the matter years ago or at any time since.

"The council simply does not know its own rules and how to apply them.

"If the board is not legal, that's fine but they have to tell us and explain what has happened. I have been advised by the staff in my shop and my co-Director that despite their offer to remove the advertising board in question the council officer who attended stated that "it is a zero tolerance offence and the fixed penalty notice will still be issued" yet the Thurrock Council website states: 'Unless the offence is particularly flagrant or repeated, we may not prosecute at first. Instead, we may invite the advertiser to apply for the consent needed. If consent is refused, the advertiser has a right of appeal to the Secretary of State. None of that has happened. I do not believe we should be penalised."

That is a view shared by Homesteads ward councillor Gary Byrne who says the council is wrong to try and take action against traders keeping the town's shopping centre alive in difficult trading times.

He said: "It must be so very frustrating when the enforcement people issue a fine to a Stanford business while at the same time a local car salesman is selling plying his trade outside the same shop in the restricted parking bays. The vehicles carry signs with full contact details of the seller's business. What's the difference?

"A blind eye is turned and I can only think of one reason why this continues to happen. And cars being removed once enforcement arrive in town to penalise other vehicles happens far too many times to be coincidental.

Another Ad-board blunder by the council.

"Hopefully the fine will be quashed and council enforcement can deal with the bigger issues in Stanford. If this goes to court I will happily speak on behalf of every shop owner that is treated very differently to other businesses that receive special benefits."

Mr Lloyd-Warne concluded by saying: "For the reason stated above we will not be paying any sum of money to Thurrock Council in relation to this matter and if Thurrock Council wish to escalate this matter we welcome the opportunity to have it heard in a magistrates' court."

It's not the first time council enforcement action in Stanford-le-Hope has come a cropper becasue of administration blunders: https://thurrock.nub.news/news/local-news/common-sense-prevails-u-turn-on-controversial-parking-tickets-by-thurrock-council-which-is-to-change-printing-method-on-permits-after-nub-news-highlights-the-issue

And in 2019 the Thurrock Independent, forefunner of Nub News, intervened and got a refund for local businesses, including a Corringham butcher's shop, after more A-board blunders! https://thurrock.nub.news/news/local-news/our-investigation-prompts-council-apology-and-fines-are-paid-back-rogue-firm-is-in-breach-of-contract-137165