A blunder at a Tenterden shop has resulted in a pensioner being hit with a £191 fine and threatened with the bailiffs over an unpaid fine for using the Dartford Crossing.

Kevin Richards, 70, from Woodchurch, went to pay in advance to use the route into Essex as he prepared to visit in daughter in London.

He went to the Stubbs Cross post office in Kingsnorth to pay the £6 return fare for his van on October 28 last year.

But when postmistress Jo Walia experienced difficulties processing the payment on the day, she asked staff at her Best-One shop in St Michael’s, Tenterden, to handle the transaction instead.

But an input error by a member of staff, who got one letter in the plate wrong, meant that the retired carpenter’s Ford Transit van was identified as a car. As a result just £5 was taken in payment.

The mishap led to Mr Richards technically owing £1 and resulted in a volley of correspondence between himself and Highways England, the body responsible for the charge, in which he attempted to explain that as far as he was concerned he had paid over his £6 for the journey.

But his appeals by phone and post fell on deaf ears and the intervention of Mrs Walia, who wrote to the agency confirming the circumstances of the underpayment failed to halt the process.

She said: “I have been trying to help my customer and writing to Highways England but they are not very helpful.”

Two separate payments need to be made for the crossing, one for the north side and the other for the south side, but the appeals referred to one part of the crossing not both. leading to one charge remaining on file.

Mr Richards was expecting Marston High Court enforcement officials to call at his temporary mobile home that he is living in while building his own house, so in desperation he paid the £191 fine.

But after the intervention of the Kentish Express, bosses at Highways England have reviewed the circumstances of the fine and offered Mr Richards a full refund.

Highways England spokesman Howard Rhoades said: “After further investigation, we can confirm that Mr Richards’ payment was submitted against the wrong registration number.

“On receipt of penalty charge notices, Mr Richards submitted a representation but detailed only one of the penalty charge notices.

“Unfortunately, this was treated in isolation and only this penalty charge cancelled, leaving the remaining one outstanding.

“As a result of our investigation, we can see that the customer attempted to make payment for both crossings and as a result we are cancelling all outstanding penalty charge notices against the vehicle and Mr Richards will receive a full refund.

“We are sorry for any inconvenience caused.”

He added: “Dart Charge has removed a significant source of congestion at the Dartford Crossing, and the vast majority of drivers are paying their Dart Charge on time.

"We work hard to help people avoid a penalty wherever possible and court-appointed enforcement agents are only ever used as a last resort to chase up non-payment, and only when each case has been authorised by the courts.”