Does any one know where I can research how Insurance Companies manage to get work done at about 4 times the real value of the work. I my case how can they charge almost £2000 for a job that realistically cost £400-£500? Thanks

Hi everyone, your help and advice is requested. In August I accidently caused damage to a garden wall whilst driving a hire truck. I immediately contacted the householder and explained what I had done, gave her all my details, name, address, phone numbers. I also gave her my assurances I would have the matter put right and the wall re-built. I immediately contacted a builder friend and asked him to have a look and to give me a quote. He came back to me within a day or so to say that it would set me back £400 - £500 - and apologised it was so much. He was emphatic that the damage to the garden gate could easily be repaired without the need to replace. I told him to go ahead with the work. After a week or so he re-visited the site with his bricklayer who was to carry out the work and knocked at the door as a matter of courtesy to let the occupant know that they were having a final look at the work required prior to starting the job. However at this stage, the woman became belligerent and very abusive and essentially threw them off her property saying that she didn't want them to do any work as she was putting it in the hands of her insurers. My builder friend - who is no shy retiring violet came to see me and he was fuming saying he had never in his life been treated in such a rude manner and regardless of his price or our friendship - he would never set foot on that premises again. I was quite shocked and taken aback by this turn of events and wrote to the woman almost immediately saying that as she had frustrated my honest attempts to have the work carried out I could only assume that she no longer wanted it done and therefore the matter was now closed as far as I was concerned. The wall was later rebuilt (almost a month later that I would have had it done) Yesterday I received a letter from a company named Beachcroft LLP with an address in Bristol, acting on behalf of Zurich Insurance and demanding a payment of £1996 plus a further £50 for their client's excess to be paid by the 3rd Nov. They quote that they hold me responsible (for the damage) in negligence. And of course there is the inevitable rider of Court proceedings if I dont pay by the 3rd Nov. My view is: I was not negligent - it was an accident and it does not follow that an accident is as a result of negligence. and I have absolutely no intention of paying nearly £2000 for a job I could have and tried to complete for £400 - £500 I was not given the opportunity to make recompense in fact I was positively denied the opportunity and to now land me this outlandish bill is totally unacceptable. I feel so passionate about this injustice that I a willing to go to court and defend my position. I feel it is no more than a complete rip off. Advice would be particularly welcomed. Thank You

I do like a challenge!

I see your point and can fully understand it. Still it would be interesting to ask the Council what the exceptions to the regulations are. Dust carts etc do of course have to be stationary from time to time to fulfil their obligations but there does seem something hypocritical about CEO parking indiscriminately while they target motorist for their often misdemeanours.I think it's fair play I'm after here

I think I will need to ask the question of the Council, if there are provisions within local traffic regulation orders that excuse CEO abiding by the law, as we are expected to do. I will keep the forum informed of their reply.

Thank you Green & Mean. I will certainly contest this PCN on the strength of the info given above by Blog Dollocks and as mentioned earlier by Sailor Sam - the photos do not show any supporting evidence as to the position of the car in relation to any road markings etc. As a matter of interest I will re-visit the site tomorrow and stand at the spot where the photo was taken from (as determined by Google Earth using the coordinates printed on the Photos). I do not believe it possible to see road markings at that distance and I think there is a slight rise in the road making it impossible from that height and position to see markings on the far side of the junction. I'll report my findings.

Well that's great news indeed thank you very much.

Frequently, I have seen CEOs pull up in their vehicle, park on yellow lines, not pay for a ticket and even once cause a relatively big traffic hold up, whilst they pounced on some motorist for breaches of parking legislation. Do they have any special dispensation to break the law whilst undertaking their duties? If so can you advise where it is set down in law? Cheers!

The rear of the PCN under the heading Camera Evidence invites me to to be provided with, free of charge, such still images from that record as, in the authority's opinion, establish the contravention. Does that mean they are holding other photos and if so could they use them in an appeal. Or would they have to rely on the two that they have sent to me and called "case evidence report" ?

The wording on the PCN differs slightly from the wording on the list of contraventions I downloaded from newparkinglaws.co.uk where it says "parked with one or more wheels on any part of an urban road other than a carriageway (footway parking). Whereas on the PCN it reads "Parked with one or more wheels on or over a footpath or any part of a road other than a carriageway (camera enforcement). Is that significant?

Did you manage to see the photos?

Pictures by TheodoreTrundle - Photobucket Hopefully this is what is needed - fingers crossed!

But regardless of my wife being in the car - I would have been stationary in that position in any event to allow the oncoming traffic to pass!

OK I've saved the pics in Photobucket.com. Now how do I get them on here?

I'll see what I can do about the size. I believe I was on School markings but had no choice as I had to let other traffic pass!

Good Morning, I've now been able to scan and "wash" the photos. Hopefully they are attached.

Ok but it will probably have to wait 'till tomorrow when I can get one of my children to do it. Thanks

Thanks Lamma - how do I wash the pics and pcn?

Good evening and a Happy New Year to you all. A couple of days ago I received through the post a PCN with two nice photos of my car under the heading "Case Evidence Report" The offence too place on the 17th December in a local nearby road. I can remember the incident. When I'm not working I will occasionally drive my wife to work at the local school where she is a teacher - this avoids her havering to use her own car with difficult parking at the school. Usually I would drive straight into the school and drop her off there but on this morning, there was a Refuse lorry in the gateway so i judged it best to avoid it. Instead, I turned right intending to drop her off just a little way down the road in a safe place but found myself facing several cars trying to get down the road and heading towards me. I was fortunate that I could move over to my left to allow them to pass and whilst there suggested to the missus that she should get out here. She did - I moved off. All completed in the blink of an eye. The first photo shows my car with the passenger door open and a foot emerging from the passenger seat. The second photo shows my wife alighted from the car and the passenger door shut. In both pics, the brake light is on (one was out of action - oh dear!) the time span between the two photos is 4 SECONDS. The "offence or contravention quoted is 62J "Parked with one or more wheels on or over a footpath or any part of a road other than a carriageway (Camera enforcement). The photos do not show any markings, or footpath. In fact nothing on the roadway is discernible at all. I've been back to the location and I reckon that for a camera car to have taken this photo, it must have been parked on the school crossing markings - is that allowed? I wish to contest this ticket on the grounds that 1) 4 seconds does not constitute parking - it is certainly not in keeping with the Oxford Dictionary meaning of "Parked" and 2) The photos give absolutely no indication of the location of the car in respect of the roadway or the footpath or any markings. 3). I had no alternative but to pull over to my left to allow other vehicles to pass. What advice can you give me? Regards