Yesterday I was out of town on an appointment, called into Morrisons for 10 minutes, came back to a parking ticket for £40 or £15 if I pay in 14 days.

I'm not familiar with this particular town and as I drove into the car park, saw a sign saying 2 hours parking free. I just parked up and ran in, didn't realise you have to get a pay and display ticket, and I'm presuming you then get your money back from the store...

Anyway, I was fuming, the 'warden' said he was working for Morrisons, Morrisons say he's not working for them, he works for CP Plus and to take it up with them.

There was a shoddy badly photocopied note in with the parking ticket saying any appeals should be made in writing but appeals will only be considered if the charge was issued by mistake and no appeals will be considered if you were not aware of any charges / did not see the signs / did not know how to pay / vehicle was broken down.

So basically, they've got me haven't they?

I'm fuming. £15. I spent £50 in that store, it's just not fair.

Shall I pay or throw the ticket away?

do not pay. post up a picture of the 'ticket' (use tinypic). the PPC 'industry' works by misrepresentation and deceit, it is a [problem].

sorry, these are huge....

very sorry for the size...

well their invoice already breaks at least one Statutory Instrument (and I can think of a couple more). Do NOT contact them. Wait for the Registered Keeper to receive a letter from them and then post that up here - also suitably washed of personal details. I note that you said it was you that parked (bad idea !) but have not said who the Owner of the vehicle is - that is good. Do NOT mention who the owner is in this thread OR IN ANY PMs that you may send - ever. And do NOT imply it either.

Thanks.

I'm scared...

I'm really quite nervous about this, shall I take the pictures down now?

I'm on the verge of paying the £15 to be honest, I just don't want to get to the stage where the fee is going up and up...

good grief no. read the stickies here about private parking and unenforceable invoices.

You were shopping for 10 minutes in an unfamiliar store, and spent £50!? Are you superwoman!?

Do as lamma says. The document can justifiably be ignored because it doesn't even say who is liable to pay the charge.

The man has given you a penalty charge. Private companies cannot issue penalties - only councils can do such a thing.

It's probably an offence under the 2006 Fraud Act to even demand a penalty charge.

All you have is an unenforceable invoice. All they can do is claim the losses they've incurred (£1 from you not pay and displaying) and even then, since you were a customer I doubt they're even entitled to that.

It's just one big [problem].

• do not pay

• do not contact them

• ignore any letters you receive, no matter how threatening

• they will go away after 5 or 6

I'm on the verge of paying the £15 to be honest, I just don't want to get to the stage where the fee is going up and up...

The 'fee' will go up and up. It's just a con to scare you into paying. They could send you a letter next week demanding £1,000. They could demand a million pounds.

Why do you think you should pay? Just ignore the clowns. It's a [problem].

How very modern of CP Plus that they will take payment in £s or Euros, although I see they are using a conversion rate of 1.62 when the current rate is more like 1.28 so I bet they also hope everyone pays in Euros!!

Well I cheered up a bit reading these replies, BUT... they seem like a 'proper' company, they have a website and a client list, and surely Morrisons wouldn't employ a bunch of thieves...

I'm worrying myself sick about all this, it's just so unfair.

And how did I spend £50 in ten minutes? Firstly I'm a woman, secondly I can't resist a wine offer.

To pay or not to pay. I really want to believe you guys... and that it will all go away if I ignore it...

Well I cheered up a bit reading these replies, BUT... they seem like a 'proper' company,

they may be a "proper" company, but that doesn't make them honest and ethical

they have a website and a client list,

..and may have been set up in 5 minutes ( probably wasn't but that doesn't change anything)

and surely Morrisons wouldn't employ a bunch of thieves...

 

*rofl* why not?

We had a similar one and they went away eventually.

Not as bad as the day I got wheelclamped for going to the Co-op in Whitby for ten minutes. They wanted £117.50 which I did not have so I told him to take my car as it wasn't worth that. He took the clamp off:D

Will I get blacklisted? My credit rating is squeaky clean up to now.

Will I get blacklisted? My credit rating is squeaky clean up to now.

Not unless they take you to court AND win, AND you fail to pay the judgement in 28 days from the court date.

BUT... they seem like a 'proper' company, they have a website and a client list, and surely Morrisons wouldn't employ a bunch of thieves...

You would be surprised. They're all at it - remember the supermarket gets a cut from every ticket. Feel free to write and complain to Morrisons and tell them how disgusted you are that they are employing companies who scare and intimidate their customers into paying unlawful penalties.

I'm worrying myself sick about all this, it's just so unfair.

Please try not to worry. You're the exact reason these companies make their money - by scaring you into paying. People do get scared and they try to make their paperwork seem as intimidating as possible because they know it.

On the other hand, why worry at all? All you have to do is ignore some letters that come through your door. After they've sent 4 or 5 and used up their red ink they WILL go away.

If you want more reassurance, post your thread here too and a whole new bunch of people will tell you what we're telling you!

FightBack Forums -> Parking and Decriminalised Notices

To pay or not to pay. I really want to believe you guys... and that it will all go away if I ignore it...

Please don't pay. If it's any comfort, I got one in March and have had two letters which I completely ignored. The record on the forum is 70 (seventy) of these tickets.

Feel free to post every letter you receive (minus personal details) and we'll tell you to ignore each one. No doubt they'll be full of illegal terms.

Yes it all may seem official. I recommend you watch this video to see just how easy it is to set up one of these so called 'proper companies'.

BBC Media Player#

Wow, you guys!

I'm sorry for all these questions but I'm still really upset by this, I've never had a parking ticket or a fine or even a red bill in my life.

Can they take me to court? Will I have to go?

Zayna,

If you're really that concerned, wait for them to write to the registered keeper (RK). Then the registered keeper should write to them stating (without saying anything about the situation) that the letter appears to have been sent by mistake, and would they mind sending corroborating information otherwise the RK will ignore all future correspondence.

In all likelihood they won't - the registered keeper will just get a standard "your appeal has been rejected" letter. Then you're home free as they can't take you or the registered keeper to court if they haven't answered a reasonable question with a straightforward answer. At the very least they should provide a copy of the alleged contract.

Take a deep breath, have a glass of that nice wine you bought and you'll soon perk up

CALM DOWN !

look at my thread, going through two at the moment

one sainsbury's one wickes... See some of the threatening letters

I have received !!!

I'm just ignoring them all

I would have paid long ago had I not discovered this site

(from page 12 on http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/parking-traffic-offences/20701-parking-charge-70-euro-12.html )

Zayna,

 

If you're really that concerned, wait for them to write to the registered keeper (RK). Then the registered keeper should write to them stating (without saying anything about the situation) that the letter appears to have been sent by mistake, and would they mind sending corroborating information otherwise the RK will ignore all future correspondence.

 

In all likelihood they won't - the registered keeper will just get a standard "your appeal has been rejected" letter. Then you're home free as they can't take you or the registered keeper to court if they haven't answered a reasonable question with a straightforward answer. At the very least they should provide a copy of the alleged contract.

 

Take a deep breath, have a glass of that nice wine you bought and you'll soon perk up

The PPC can issue a claim in the courts against the registered keeper.

Whether they do so or not is another matter. In all likelihood, they will send more letters, possibly even involving a debt collection agency, with words like "CCJ" and "credit rating". And then they will stop. You can either respond to these letters (there are suggested responses in the stickies here), or you could just ignore them.

However, in the event that they do issue a claim, the registered keeper has a number of defences that they might use.

• If the registered keeper was not the driver at the time of the alleged "contravention", there was no contract.
  
• There was no breach of contract - the sign invited the driver to park.
  
• in the event of a breach of contract, the charge amounts to a penalty, which is not enforceable. Only actual demonstrable loss may be claimed as damages.

If, in the unlikely event that it does reach the stage of a claim in court, you should note that advice given on the internet is no substitute for qualified legal opinion. Anyone here would be glad to give pointers though.

In any case, I wouldn't sweat it. Historically, all that happens is that letters are sent, replies are ignored, and the whole tawdry affair is soon forgotten.

Oh god, I'm dithering again now. £15 doesn't seem so bad... I can't be doing with letters and demands and writing letter after letter....

I've just ignored everyone they have sent - it gets easier ;-)