I have just seen one of their PCNs as they call them, or Parking Charge Notice as it says at the top of the "Important Legal Notice"-funny, I have never heard of an invoice called that before.

This was sent out as a result of a car overstaying the "Free Stay Period" of

one hour by 20 minutes. The fine is £100, or £50 if paid within 14 days. Does

seem exorbitant for a 20 minute overstay-especially as the driver bought a meal when he was there. I use meal in its widest possible context as it was

in a McDonalds drive thru carpark.

I know that one cannot use the wording "Fixed Penalty Notice" as a private

contractor, but is PCN similarly earmarked for the use of Councils only?

The DVLA apparently have a Code of Practice when supplying drivers details

to commercial companies -here are some of them-

Vehicle keepers must be contacted by letter and should not be approached in their homes in respect of the enforcement of claims (other than for the service of notices and court papers) until a Court judgement has been secured.

Terms of Supply

4.1. Information will be disclosed on condition that it relates to, and will be used only in connection with, an enquiry relating to the identification of a vehicle keeper for a parking contravention/trespass on private property.

NO OTHER USE IS PERMITTED.

4.2. The principles of the Data Protection Act 1998 must always be adhered to when such information is disclosed.

4.3. Nothing in this Code shall be construed as being in any way binding by way of a contract or otherwise, to supply all or any data to the enquirer. Nonetheless, DVLA will not normally withhold data unless the enquirer fails to comply with the terms of the Data Protection Act.

4.4. The information provided is the property of DVLA and must not be duplicated or held for longer than is necessary.

Use of Data

6.1. The enquirer must not disclose any Data to a third party other than in respect of the institution of legal proceedings. However, if the enquirer intends to use a third party to process data on their behalf, these Terms will apply to the third party and the Data may only be used for the aforementioned purpose. The enquirer will be held liable for any breach of these Terms by the third party. DVLA will not be held responsible for any problem arising between the enquirer and any such third party.

Not so sure that DVLA can opt out of its responsibilities on its own say so.

For anyone interested at this url-http://www.landor.co.uk/parkingreview/images/bill2.pdf

if you look at the section in pink headed "Things to avoid......."

no 4 the registered keeper /owner of the vehicle is not legally liable

PCN as issued by council's are PENALTY CHARGE NOTICES (PCN).

The PPC is having a bit of a 'twist' to PCN, prob. in an effort to make it seem like a council charge.

The British Parking Association guide to wheel clamping, and private ticketing is available on their website to download as a pdf. It makes interesting reading, with such rules as ' staff employed issuing tickets must have an ID card, and uniform'. So much for euro car parks !. Uniform yes, badge - no.

What's the outcome? Are you still dealing with MET?

Ok here is the deal with MET Parking. They cannot take you to court for the huge amount they threaten to. They can only take you to court for the amount the parking ticket cost you which isn't worth their while.

They will send you endless letters asking for payment, then after 3 or 4 months the letters will have FINAL WARNING or something like that written on it. You will then receive a phone call from their so called solicitors asking you to confirm your post code as they are going to take you to court & need to send you the papers (since when do solictors do this?!!!). The papers will then arrive with another FINAL WARNING on it.

I went through all this over about a 6 month period & they eventually go away as they know full well they cannot take you to court. The letters & phone calls are just to scare you into paying. Take it from me ignore them completely, keep all the papers & get on with your life as they will crawl back under the rock they came from eventually.

Also I forgot to add that I'm pretty sure that the MET Police took them to court as they use a very similar name & logo - check it out - very similar. Why do you think they chose the MET Police name & logo to copy? - as it will scare people into paying without argument & they will think it is above board if they are linked to the police.

Look for the Perky thread on here & you'll find that this type of extortion has been dealt a savage blow. In the case of Excel Parking (which is large company) the court decided they had no licence from the land owners which would have permitted them to charge for parking which is precisley what they are doing & that a tenant such as McDonalds cannot grant one:D

My mum got a PCN from MET parking a few weeks ago and we paid it within the 14days.

She has now rec'd a 2nd one for a week later parking in the same car park. She totally forgot about paying it and now it is upto £100.

Reading all these posts is making me think about now paying it. Should we ignoreit or pay up. Advice if poss pls. Thanks.

My mum got a PCN from MET parking a few weeks ago and we paid it within the 14days.

She has now rec'd a 2nd one for a week later parking in the same car park. She totally forgot about paying it and now it is upto £100.

Reading all these posts is making me think about now paying it. Should we ignoreit or pay up. Advice if poss pls. Thanks.

IGNORE, IGNORE, and then IGNORE.

If you want to give money away is there not a charity more worthwhile of your generosity?

regards

I was issued a ticket by MET despite having a valid pay and display ticket. I wrote with a copy of it, but my protests were ignored and the ticket doubled along with threats of court action and bailiffs. As MET are the adjudicators, it's like having the prosecution counsel as the judge! They sent a wide angle photo of my car which proves nothing. I am reassured by reading these posts that they will not take court action, although I cannot see how they could possibly win.

My mum got a PCN from MET parking a few weeks ago and we paid it within the 14days.

She has now rec'd a 2nd one for a week later parking in the same car park. She totally forgot about paying it and now it is upto £100.

Reading all these posts is making me think about now paying it. Should we ignoreit or pay up. Advice if poss pls. Thanks.

Your mum's been scammed once - don't let her do it again.

• do not pay

• do not contact them

• ignore their threatening junkmail

• they will not take you to court

• no bailiffs will turn up

• they will give up and go away

I got a ticket in my local gym for parking outside of a bay from Met Services (someone four cars down parked outside the bay and the knock on effect meant several cars,myself included, all did the same). Despite having a strong case I am pretty sure I'm going down the ignore, ignore, ignore route. The only problem is I use the car park three times a week, do they have any authority to clamp my car for non payment/ignoring their letters.

No.

I entered into correspondence with MET and tried to appeal my parking ticket because I had a valid ticket. But they disallowed it and threatened me with bailiffs, etc. It's like having the prosecution counsel acting as Judge!

At least with a local authority PCN, one has recourse to independent adjudicators. Apparently MET won't take you to court because their paperwork is illegal. Ie erroneously claiming it's a PCN, as from local authorities or the police. They rely on scare tactics to coerce people into paying up, but apparently never take action. But I'm still worried that my car may get impounded as they have access to the DVLA records and know my address.

I asked for photographic proof, and was sent a wide angle shot with a time code, but one can't make out the ticket.

The real scandal is that that the DVLA sells personal information to these sharks who don't abide by the law and are not subject to independent adjudication. I read about a case where a private contractor and rapist (who was convicted) used his access to the DVLA database to find the address of his victim! Shocking!

Alternatively, if you want to attempt to reason with them and get them to cancel the fine, on this forum there are templates of letters challenging their legality, that may be effective. I've yet to find out

I don't know what to do either, having commenced correspondence and admitted to being the driver. I have successfully appealed PCNs from the LA when I had a valid permit that slipped from the dashboard. At least they listen to reason.

Maybe I'll be a martyr, if I can be bothered!

Natwestlondon,

You have found out how pointless to even waste the time and a stamp to appeal these [problem] invoices.

The best action now is to ignore all their letters.

regards

It's not a fine.

Re: MET Parking Services

I have been sent a Parking Charge Notice from these guys. I had arranged to meet a friend at the Gatwick Airport's McDonalds, she called to say it was too far to walk. I picked her up and went back to buy food. We ate in the car and was there for no longer that 15 mins. A week later I got a Parking charge notice, with 2 pics of me in the car alone and one with both of us in the car. There is a clear sign saying I could not return, I did not see the sign that night though. I wish I'd read all this first as I actually wrote to them to say yes it was me and explained what has happened. They have just written back to say I still have to pay saying due to photographic evidence etc I still need to pay. Please reassure me that it will not end up in court. Has anyone been taken to court? I am worried sick and do not have 50.00 to pay them any way!

Ignore it.

Pity you didn't notice the sign on the first visit though coz then you could have taken your custom somewhere other than McDonalds.

Don't forget to tell McDonalds you don't intend either paying the parking charge or spend any more money in their chain.

Thank you. I will. I will ignore it. I will write to their head office. I have tried to call them but can't get through. I think it will be better to write to them. Of course my hubby is worried and doesn't want us to end up with a judgement against us. Can this happen?

Thank you. I will. I will ignore it. I will write to their head office. I have tried to call them but can't get through. I think it will be better to write to them. Of course my hubby is worried and doesn't want us to end up with a judgement against us. Can this happen?

Yes, under the following circumstances:

1) They take you to court (same odds as winning the Euro lottery)

2) They win the case against you (same odds as winning the Euro Lottery 4 weeks on the run)

3) You refuse to pay the judgement against you within 28 days

regards

Met have never taken anyone to court.

I visited McDonalds today, at 60 Sewardstone Rd, in Chingford, where they employ MET Parking Services to patrol the car park. Today I watched, along with others, while the attendant took advantage of the fact that the car park was full to capacity (probably less than 30 cars?) and taking photos and issuing tickets to customers who had to resort to parking in the disabled bays so that they could buy from the restaurant. Those disabled bays don't really serve their purpose as they're not exactly where I would call the best position for disabled users anyway, but I digress.

Not surprisingly, this provoked a response from customers, who complained to the restaurant staff, a passing police van (who had also just bought their lunch from the restaurant), and the parking attendant, all of who seemed quite bemused by it, probably because they are all aware that the parking charge notices they then send out aren't really legally binding and lawful, and therefore not a matter for the police unless it turns violent or the victim decides to consider the matter a criminal offence, such as extorting money by harassment and fraudulent means, for example.

Because of this, I've complained to Mcdonalds and MET Parking services, who I suspect probably won't really care. I thought it might be in the local public's interest to know about this con, so I've also let my local paper know.

I bet if you were to visit the car park now, that the same con artist will still be taking advantage of potential customers, and probably does so every lunchtime when it's potentially likely to get busy.

I'm sure he's probably lost McDonalds a few customers today by his actions, so you would think they might take it a little seriously, but I'll wait and see.

Half tempted to go back down there, and for every person he issues a ticket to, tell them about this forum and tell them not to bother getting angry and shouting at the lowlife.

Try your local paper.

Half tempted to go back down there, and for every person he issues a ticket to, tell them about this forum and tell them not to bother getting angry and shouting at the lowlife.

Thats the way to hurt them most.

regards

Thank you all for your help and advice. I managed to ring McDonalds head office, who were very sorry but said there was nothing they could do. I told her in very polite terms that they should be ashamed of themselves. She reasured me that the MET Parking Services were a reputable company and that they would not use them if they were not. She also said they they are legally entitled to enforce the payment of this fine. I reminded her that it wasn't a fine, but an invoice! I have also written to them to tell them I will not eat McDonalds again!

It is amazing that they get away with this. I will not pay it and will keep you all posted with the letters I get as I will need reassurance that I am doing the right thing!

Thanks again.

McDonalds employ MET parking so yes they are responsible for their actions.

If the PPC started putting tickets on every single car using McDonalds, irrespective of the time spent there, they would soon do something about it.