'I'm barely eating, I'm grieving and I'm being hounded by bailiffs'

A woman grieving four family members says she can't afford to pay a bus lane fine - and is already 'barely eating'. Barbara Edwards, 77, lost her daughter, husband, niece and brother within a year.

She says she accidentally drove into the bus lane on Bridge Street West in Manchester city centre when she saw a woman bearing a striking resemblance to her late child.

Having been hit with a £60 fine in July last year, Barbara says she's now being 'hounded' by bailiffs, with the penalty rocketing to £409.

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Her ordeal started when she was dropping her granddaughter off at her part-time job, months after Barbara's daughter passed away having been diagnosed with stage four colon cancer.

She said: "We were driving and this lady stepped out in front of the car. She was the absolute doppelganger of my daughter. I was in shoc, I couldn't take it in. She had the same hair, the same coat... it was like she was there.

"My granddaughter was absolutely hysterical. She started having a panic attack in the car." Barbara, from Middleton, said she wasn't sure what to do and 'just had to get away' following the incident.

"I must have driven into the bus lane, it was accidental," she added. "I've got a clean driving licence, I've been driving 52 years. But I was in shock, I don't know what happened."

"I don't have the money to pay," Barbara added. "I'm really, really struggling. I'm barely eating. With grief, you know, nothing else matters. You just live from one hour to the next. It's like depression."

Barbara's lodged two unsuccessful appeals. The matter is now with an enforcement agency. "It's now at the stage where bailiffs are threatening to take the furniture," she added. "They're hounding me. They want £409. I'm out of my mind with it, I haven't got it. I just haven't got that kind of money."

She said she's still paying off a £6,700 bill for her daughter's funeral. Barbara said she was 'grateful' for receiving a £3,400 bereavement grant, but 'still owes a lot of money'.

"I'm not sleeping," she added. I can't put my heating on and winter's coming. We really are struggling to pay this money. They offered for me to pay instalments but that doesn't help me. Instalments out of what? I can't offer them what I don't have."

A spokesperson for Manchester council said: "Firstly, the Council would like to extend its sincere sympathies for the loss Mrs Edwards has experienced.

"Since July of 2023 the Council has made numerous and repeated attempts to reach a solution with Mrs Edwards, placing her PCN on hold on three separate occasions, offering a discounted rate as well as a payment plan. Unfortunately, these attempts have either been rejected or not responded to.

"As in any case where a PCN is issued a motorist has the right to appeal. In this case two independent bodies – The Traffic Penalty Tribunal and the Traffic Enforcement Centre – have decided to reject the appeals made.

"Enforcement Agencies are only used as a method of last resort when all attempts to engage have failed, and it is regrettable that this has happened in this case.

"The PCN remains on hold and a Council officer has made an offer to contact Mrs Edwards to discuss the matter in greater detail."