My water provider has put in place a hosepipe ban starting officially on July 3. 

However, it has asked users to comply straight away. Can I get in trouble if I fill up a paddling pool for my children between now and then? 

What is the worst that could happen if I do it once the ban is in force?

Name and address supplied.

Dean Dunham replies: Let me put your mind at rest on the central point straight away. Between now and July 3, you cannot be fined for filling a paddling pool, however you choose to fill it. 

The reason lies in the difference between a request and a rule.

A hosepipe ban, formally known as a temporary use ban, only carries legal force once it officially comes into effect, in your case on July 3. 

Cooling off: A reader needs to know if they can fill up a paddling pool when a hosepipe ban in force

A voluntary appeal to cut back is simply a plea for goodwill and community effort, whereas a statutory ban is a legally enforceable order. 

So when your water company asks customers to comply early, that is a polite nudge, not the law. Ignore it and you have broken no rules.

From July 3, however, the picture changes. Filling a paddling pool from a hosepipe is one of the specifically restricted activities under the ban. 

Breach it and, in the worst case, you face prosecution in the magistrates’ court and a maximum fine of £1,000 under section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991.

Before you panic, though, that figure is the statutory ceiling, not the opening move. Water companies generally prefer to issue one or two warnings before pursuing any penalty, reserving prosecution for persistent offenders. 

A one-off paddling pool infraction is hardly going to see you frogmarched to court. 

Finally, the ban restricts the means, not the activity itself. You are perfectly entitled to fill a paddling pool using a watering can or buckets, even during the ban. Stored rainwater from a water butt is also fair game. 

Can I avoid an airport drop-off fine due to exit traffic?

I collected my daughter from the airport pick-up zone, which has a maximum stay length of 15 minutes. 

However, it was extremely busy and we ended up stuck in heavy traffic when trying to exit the car park. 

I received a letter saying I’d stayed for 21 minutes along with a fine of £100. I have pictures of the traffic jam. What can I do?

M. H., Manchester.

Dean Dunham replies: There is a strong argument that this charge is unfair, so don’t reach for your wallet just yet. First, the basics. 

An airport pick-up spot is private land, so this isn’t a fine in the legal sense – it’s a parking charge notice. 

This is a claim for breach of contract by a private operator. The contract here is whatever the signs at the site set out.

That distinction matters, because private charges can be challenged far more easily than people assume. Your strongest card is that you did not overstay through any choice of your own. 

The 15-minute limit is the operator’s offer, but the law of contract assumes you can reasonably perform your side. 

If gridlock inside the operator’s own car park physically prevented you from leaving and you have photographs to prove it, then the delay was caused by congestion, not your dawdling. That’s a powerful fairness argument.

Crucially, most major operators belong to an accredited trade association – either the British Parking Association (BPA) or the International Parking Community (IPC). 

Their codes of practice require a grace period and demand that charges be fair and clearly signed. Six minutes over, caused by the traffic, sits squarely in disputed territory.

Firstly, do not ignore the letter. Appeal directly to the operator in writing first, attaching your time-stamped photos and explaining you were trapped in queuing traffic.

If it rejects your claim, the firm must issue a code allowing you to appeal to the independent adjudicator, Parking on Private Land Appeals (POPLA) for BPA members, or the Independent Appeals Service for IPC members, both of which are free to use. 

Set out your evidence calmly and factually at each stage. Don’t feel pressured by threatening debt recovery letters inflating the sum if you receive them. Stand your ground, as the circumstances are firmly on your side.