Order for Recovery: what to do (and whether you need a witness)

What is an Order for Recovery?

An Order for Recovery is a court document from the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) in Northampton confirming your unpaid penalty charge is now registered as a debt. It is not a fresh fine. It means the council or authority has escalated the original PCN through the court and can move towards enforcement agents (bailiffs).

It arrives because the earlier stages, the Penalty Charge Notice and the notice to owner or charge certificate, went unpaid or unchallenged. The authority registers the debt with the TEC, and the TEC sends the Order for Recovery to the registered keeper.

The Order for Recovery is also the point at which you get a formal route to challenge the debt. Since October 2026 that route uses either a TE13 or a PE3, depending on the kind of penalty. The order names the form to use.

How long do I have to respond?

You usually have 21 days from the Order for Recovery to pay or to file your challenge with the Traffic Enforcement Centre. If you do neither, bailiffs can be told to visit.

If you are already outside the 21 days, or need more time, you can still apply. You fill in a TE14, which asks the TEC to accept your TE13 or PE3 late or to give you more time, and you send it together with your TE13 or PE3.

If your form is a PE3, it has to be sworn in person, which takes a slot in someone’s diary. It is worth booking that appointment now rather than at day 20.

What happens if I ignore it?

If you neither pay nor challenge an Order for Recovery in time, bailiffs can be told to visit. Enforcement fees are then added on top of the original penalty, so the amount you owe can rise sharply.

Ignoring it does not make it go away, and it removes your cheaper options. Acting inside the 21-day window, or applying late with a TE14 as soon as you can, keeps the simpler remedy open.

Which form do I use: TE13 or PE3?

If your Order for Recovery names an old form, use its replacement: a TE9 is now the TE13, and a TE7 or PE2 is now the TE14. Gov.uk says to use a TE13 for a parking PCN, a moving traffic contravention outside London, or a Dart Charge, Mersey Gateway or clean air zone PCN. It says to use a PE3 for a moving traffic contravention in a London borough, or a low emission or clean air zone PCN.

A TE13 is a witness statement. You sign it with a statement of truth, and it does not need a witness. A PE3 is a statutory declaration. It must be sworn in person before a Commissioner for Oaths (for example a solicitor), a Justice of the Peace, or an officer of the county court.

On either form you can say, for example, that you did not get the notice to owner, that you made a formal challenge on time but did not get a notice of rejection, that you appealed to the independent tribunal on time but got no response, or that you have proof you paid. You must only state what is true.

If your challenge succeeds, the Order for Recovery is withdrawn and bailiffs cannot act on it. The authority will then cancel the PCN, issue a new notice to owner, or refer your case to the independent tribunal. So it is not always the end of the penalty, but it stops the enforcement.

When does it have to be witnessed in person?

Only a PE3 needs a witness. It is a statutory declaration, so it must be sworn in person before a Commissioner for Oaths, a Justice of the Peace or an officer of the county court. A TE13 and a TE14 are signed with a statement of truth and need no witness.

For a PE3, bring the original printed form and do not sign it in advance. You sign it in front of the witness, who then completes their part.

Making a false statutory declaration is an offence under section 5 of the Perjury Act 1911, carrying up to two years in prison. That is why the grounds you state must be true.

The exact steps to respond

Follow the steps below in order and you keep the whole process inside the deadline. If your form is a PE3, book the witnessing appointment first, because the TEC will not process a PE3 that has not been sworn correctly.

What does it cost?

If your form is a TE13, there is nothing to pay for witnessing: it needs no witness. If your form is a PE3, the only cost is having it sworn.

TEC guidance says swearing a PE3 is free at most county court hearing centres, by appointment. A solicitor or other Commissioner for Oaths charges the prescribed fee of £5 per person declaring plus £2 per exhibit.

Our service is £49. It covers a booked, in-person appointment with a qualified solicitor and Commissioner for Oaths, subject to availability, and a check that your PE3 is filled in correctly before you swear it.

Frequently asked questions