Hi Jamberson, thank you for the reply. I agree with everything you say; what is frustrating me is that despite this ticket being issued incorrectly and despite the fact there is no way to prove their claim in any case, I am assumed guilty as charged and have to provide proof of such (luckily enough I can) that have not breached their rules, and have to spend who knows how long (it is already 3-4 hours now) in fighting it, to show they have made an error, and will likely get no way to be compensated for the loss of time due to their incompetence. We will see what happens, and I hope they do not force me to go to a formal representation; they already have all the relevant information, and if they do move for a formal representation, this is going to be just another waste of time I will never get back, so I can be forced to prove my innocence all because someone has either failed to do their job correctly or has done it maliciously. The whole thing is outrageous. Thanks again for your time/effort, and the same to everyone who has posted so far. I will let you all know when I have a response from the council regarding how they have decided to proceed in this case. Mr B

Hi Jamberson, no I had no permits on display, I parked there based on the fact it is free for up to two hours...like I have several times before over the years, and in fact, did so the day before too, at roughly the same time... Mr B

So, I emailed back my local authority (East Sussex) with a picture of the first sign I posted up here, and according to a Senior civil enforcement officer: The sign in the picture shown is for permit holders or 2 hours free no return for 1 hour. Just thought I would end any more potential confusion...and at least now I know for certain that we can park there...so just need to wait for ESCC to respond to my challenge. Mr B

Hi, Michael; there is only one section/bay on that side of the road; it is one continuous section that holds about four vehicles and the sign I posted is the only sign on the side/part of the road/pavement regarding parking. Hi Jamberson, no, I do not have a permit, and no, it is not P&D on that section, so though not having a permit, I always thought the 'Or' meant it was free for a couple of hours as the signage indicates and I believe this is still the case. Regarding the code, it could be incorrect; what it should be in a valid scenario or what the CEO was trying to or should have cited (nothing to cite in reality), I have no idea, of course, and regarding the PCN, well, I am convinced this has been issued in error and is invalid, as I have not breached any of the guidelines/rules for parking in this area in relation to the two-hour parking limit or return within one hour. Thanks again, everyone, I very much appreciate everyone taking the time out to throw their views into the mix. Kindest regards Mr B

Hi Michael, thank you for your input; the PCN code is: 19 - Displaying an invalid permit Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place or zone with an invalid virtual permit or displaying an invalid physical permit or voucher or pay and display ticket, or after the expiry of paid for time. The sign I posted in my first post is right next to the parking bays; it was/is literally in line with the nearside rear of my vehicle, so there is no question it relates to these bays, and there is no question of requiring payment, it clearly states 2 hours no return within 1 hour, not, Or Pay at the machine. I can only assume they believe I had overstayed beyond the permitted two hours or returned within one hour, which is impossible to prove for them as I was elsewhere until 09:55. Regarding the meaning of the sign(s) I agree with your statement, and this is what I have always thought until I read in a couple of other places questioning it, and then Ethel mentioned it, too, that they believe the 'or' refers to the permit/zones. However, after more digging, I do not believe this to be correct, and I stand by my initial view of what it means, which is as I have always seen it. I firmly believe the sign reads...vehicles/owners with permits for zones S/H can park here unrestricted, and anyone else can park for up to two hours and cannot return to park within one hour of leaving. Also, I took more photos of the signs and those with the 'or' between the permit/zones have had the lower designation (S or H) added at a later date; I believe they have been stuck on at some point after the sign was erected, many of the lower ones look different to the one above it, such as slightly different colouring and can see of the stickers coming off on some of them, also, some of them are wonky or do not line up with the S or H above it so clearly, these were not present when the sign was created/erected. I also emailed the council to ask them to clarify if the two signs with differing layouts from the same road (The ones I posted above) mean the same thing. They have replied that they do mean the same thing, i.e. both signs mean, Permits/Zones S and H are allowed to park unrestricted, and all other vehicles must pay to park and can park for a maximum of four hours. With all this in mind, I am confident the sign I posted in my first post means Permits/Zones S and H are allowed to park unrestricted whilst all other vehicles can park for up to two hours with no return for 1 hour, which makes the PCN null and void as I was there for no more than 15 minutes when the ticket was issued, which is simply outrageous. I am waiting to hear back from the council regarding my challenge, which I also find a bit odd, I thought I would get some form of acknowledgement, but I have not received any; of course, I do not know if this is normal or not, I will wait until Friday and will call them for some guidance if I have not heard back to at least acknowledge my initial contact. Thanks again to everyone, and I will keep you posted if I hear anything back from the council... Kind regards Mr B

So, been back to check out a couple of other signs, cos I was sure I had seen some similar ones in the town; I saw these two, which are on the same street (not the one I was parked in earlier today), no more than 20M apart; and less than a mile from where I parked earlier today. There are similar signs to the first one at the top of the road, and about a quarter of the way down, they change to sign 2, this leads me to believe these signs, though slightly different, mean the same thing, and that is the very same thing the original sign I posted earlier means, as in, Permit/Zones S/H OR 2 hours and no return within 1 hour. I know these are 'Or pay...' but these are excellent examples of why the 'Or' does not apply to the Permits/Zones but to the general time restrictions for non-permit parking or instruction to pay at the machine. As mentioned, I will wait to see what the council says. Still, I will ask them to explain the differences in the signs on the same road within spitting distance, as it seems inconsistent and confusing and similar examples are dotted all around the town centre. Thanks again folks, and any thoughts on this are most welcome. Regards Mr B 20230725_ParkingSigns_2.pdf

Hi Ethel; I see your point, which is why I was starting to get confused. However, I have never seen a sign with multiple zones using the OR...I just assumed they would just list the zone/permit identifier, and the OR is usually an indicator to show that any non-permit parking is restricted to the show times; I, of course, accept I may well be incorrect in my view/assumptions. I know for a fact that in that space, residents and businesses park all day long, I do not know if this is allowed or not to be fair, I just assumed it was so, and in several years, I have never actually seen a ticket on a windscreen in that area, but then I only visit 1-2 times a week. The H is for Hotel/Visitors; honestly, I do not know if the time restrictions apply to both permits or just the H. The establishment can give out these tickets or they can be purchased at local shops for a discounted rate when compared to paying for parking via the on-street machines if you have a 'ticket' from the hotel to purchase a book that is. The sign, in my opinion, is ambiguous, and it is not clear if the restriction applies to both zone/permit types or just H or is, in fact aimed at non-permit holders as a time restriction. The signage on the other side of the road clearly states you need to have a permit or pay, there is no confusion with this, and it is not related to the area I parked in. I have had a dig through the DoT Signs Manuals, 13.8 - 13.10.5, but it is not clear if the signage complies. I will wait for them to respond and for any other responses from folks here. Thanks again for your input, I very much appreciate it.

Hi everyone, a bit of background to my story... I parked in a place I previously parked in over the years, arrived at 09:56, and returned at 11:47 to find a PCN stuck to my windscreen...It was issued at 10:10 with observation time 10:00 - 10:10, starting less than 5 minutes after I arrived. I do not believe the PCN is valid, as I thought we were allowed to park in this spot for 2 hours; as you can see, the signage says Permit Holders . . . Or 2 Hours, no return within 1 hour... The sign in question is right next to the bays and there is another section over the road that says permits or pay at machine. I read on other threads and other sites that if the signage includes 'or', you are OK to park, which is how I read it. Thanks to my dashcam, which has my registration number, time and date all showing in the footing, I have proof I was not there before this time and left at the time I mentioned above. I have made an initial challenge to the PCN, but after some digging, I am now doubting myself and wondering what other folks' take on the parking sign is, have I misread it and parked illegally? Thoughts on the matter are most welcome. Mr B 20230725_ParkingSign_1M.pdf

Hi Team, do not worry about this. I have been getting harrased from my friend about it and have decided he can fix himself. Thanks again Mr B

Hi Team, any thoughts on this? Thanks Mr B

Hi BankFodder, I will keep an eye out . . .

Hi Everyone, hope you are all keeping well in this strange new era. On the 17th Sept, my friend booked a delivery to send a parcel to the USA, a vintage sewing machine. The collection and delivery was booked through MyParcelDeliver.Com, and UPS was the chosen courier. They collected it about four days later. He paid for additional insurance along with the transportation of the item, to the tune of £128.75. He packaged the parcel very well, packed with bubble wrap and paper and also styrofoam so that the sewing machine was safe in the box. He placed some plastic wrap over this, and he then sealed the box with tape. He videoed this for the buyer, so she could see how well he had packed the item because they were both concerned about the package being well protected. The item arrived in the USA a few days later. The buyer instantly notified my friend that the parcel packaging was damaged, showing stress from water and general mishandling, and the item was also damaged in various parts, mainly the casing and the base. He complained to MyParcelDelivery.Com on the1st October, they responded with 'You need to contact UPS...', which he did and also the buyer contacted them and got a response on the 2nd October. UPS informed the buyer they would like to come and take a look at the packaging and the item, and this is the last she heard from them, she has called them several times, and always they say someone will call tomorrow and no one calls. She called my friend to ask if he could call them too and chase them up, he is Italian, and though he speaks English generally well, he asked me to talk with them on his behalf because he felt they were not listening to him or that he was missing something. I spoke with them on the 26th October, they said they had sent my friend an email about this, we checked all of his emails, junk/spam too. There is nothing in there, I asked them to resend it, but nothing has appeared despite them saying they have sent it, we know they have the correct email address because they sent a message on the 2nd confirming they are looking into the claim of a damaged package, they also said they were planning on calling the seller 'again' on the 27th, which of course never happened, which she confirmed with me on the evening of the 27th. Now it would seem to me that MyParcelDelivery is trying to say it has nothing to do with them, despite the booking being made through them, UPS US are pretending they are doing something but have so far done nothing, and we have heard Zilch from UPS UK. I would like, if possible, some guidance on how to go about getting this resolved because this is just not right, the agent/courier have had their money, but the seller and buyer have been the victims of poor service and damaged goods. If anyone could point us in the right direction on how to tackle this and get some redress for this, then I would be most grateful. Thanks and kind regards Mr B pox.pdf

Hi @slick132, BaC paid the funds into my account today, the car has been in and work been completed. All good. Made another donation to CAG . . . Thank you for your time.

Hi @slick132, thank for the reply. I will let you know when it lands for sure. I made a small donation last week and will see about making another one when I can. Thank you again. Mr B

Hi @slick132 I have received an email from BaC and they have offered to pay for the work based on the quotes I provided. They have also agreed to re-imburse me for the service and related items, which I think is a fantastic gesture on their part. The after sales chap has been super, very polite, asked me a couple of things, requested invoices and such like and gave me a response last night. I have the car booked into a local garage for the work at 09:30 tomorrow. After reading some of the other posts and advice, from some of the site team posted within similar posts, before sending my email to BaC, I decided a friendly, polite introduction to my ssues with a request for help was best, and this was the correct approach at this stage, luckily there has been no need for any heavy handed approach or any drawn out affairs, BaC have been really good in dealing with this, polite, speedy and reasonable. They said the funds will be paid into my account this afternoon, I will let you know when the money lands just to confirm. Thanks all for giving us a place to ask questions and to 'just make sure' we are doing the right thing. Best wishes all.

Hi Slick, thank you for the input, it is very much appreciated. Regarding the quotes, I agree they should be getting some prices and arranging the repair. However, if figure it would be quicker if I did it and arranged the repair myself, also it saves me having to give up the car for a period while they take it back for repair. I know the request for reimbursement for the previous actions taken by the garage may not come to anything but figure I can only ask. If they refuse to make any contribution, well, I would have done the work anyway, partly because the wheels were wobbling and also for my peace of mind, so though I am not happy about having to do it, I am glad I have. If they give me anything towards the service, sparks and wheel balancing, then I will take this as a positive response and will be very happy to receive whatever contribution they offer. I hope they do respond with some positive news about a contributory payment and for me to arrange the repair to the steering as soon as I am able. I will let you know when I have a response.

Hi Slick, thank you for the response. I was unsure if I should speak with Alphera first or BuyaCar, so thought as I have technically only been driving it 59 days, even Alphera would be looking to BaC to sort this out? And figured I would give them a try first and approach Alphera if I get no postivie response from BaC, but again was unsure if this was the proper path to go down or not, but hey, its done now and they have not told me to get lost yet! Also was not too sure how it all works with 2nd hand cars from dealerships via the internet and just wanted to make sure I do not put my foot in it before I start out. I have asked them to consider re-imbursing me for the service and extra scheduled maintenance jobs such as changing the brake fluid and servicing the air con, also for the cost of the spark plugs and then the wheel balancing because the steering had a noticeable wobble at about 60-65 MPH. I know that used cars are not perfect, and I accept that there are going to be some things I just have to accept, but I figure, I have commited myself to a near £10000 investement, which in some respects is not a massive amount of cash, but I am not at all happy about the fact that I am already being told I need to spend cash on mechanical factors that should really have been checked/picked up on the service and MOT, when I have only had it for 59 days. I just hope they sort it as overall I am really very happy with the car, and now the balancing is fixed it feels much better on the steering. I have some quotes from 3-4 garages in my area for the tie rod and it is quite astonishing at the range of prices, £149 being the cheapest and £268 being the most expensive, anyway I have sent them to BaC today and so am waiting to see what they say about the prices and the re-imbursements.

I have emailed BaC and asked nicely if they would consider re-imbursing me for all or some of the costs of the service etc, and also requested that they pay for the repairs to the tie rod and the alignment. They have today responded with a request for invoices for the service and parts and also asked me to get some pricies/qoutes for the repair/alignment work. So it is a positive start. Thanks all.

Hi All, please ask any Qs if you have any or need more info. 26th May agreed to purchase a Ford Fiesta Titanium X 66 Plate, 35,500 miles on the clock, from Dennis Buyacar, £8300, on PCP, via Alphera/BMW Financing over 4Y and all came to about £9950 with loan interests, delivery, etc etc...Paid £2700 deposit, the rest on PCP. I have had a couple of issues with it, first falsely, or their explanation was, it was a Covid mistake, advertising the car with Sat Nav, anyway they coughed up £250 for me to purchase a Sat Nav unit. They never gave me an explanation for the rear view mirror falling off the windows while I was trying to adjust it, luckily one of my friends works at Ford and explained to me I had to twist it back on. Yes I promise you it fell off. Next the drivers seat is quite badly worn, clearly someone has been getting in/out and scraping the seat with an abrasive buttock or something, they would only cough up £200 saying that 'any agency would agree this is to be expected on a car of this age...' which of course is possible, but incredibly rare on a car that is only 4y old and 35k on the clock, so I am left with fixing it myself to the tune of somewhere between £450-£1000 depending on the route I take it, yes I have checked it out and gotten all the quoutes, and yes it is an eye watering amount, even the guy at Ford coughed when I asked for the price for the drivers seat covering, or just leaving till I can no longer stand it. Anyway, BAC said the car would be fully serviced and MOT'd when I asked them about whether there would be a service/MOT at point of purchase or whether this is something I should arrange myself, so I thought, great nowt to do for a year or so apart from the incidental stuff like, top up the oil, maybe get some wipers, sort out any punctures, stuff like that. So first things I noticed happening more often, steering wheel wobble, engine had little stutter and shake now n then, like it was almost about to stall, the aircon did not seem too cool either, ok not a big deal, fuel economy not great, a very big deal, so I decided I really needed to take it for a service, if nothing else for my own peace of mind. On the service I was advised the service schedule recommends to change the brake fluid and service/re-gas the air-con amongst other things and they said the brake fluid looked a bit grungy when they drained it, and they mentioned that cos the car is now at 37000 it was worth checking if the spark plugs had been done in Y3 has they should have been or whether I wanted to replace them now just in case. I decided to get them changed, and the ones that came out were in a really bad way, even the mechanic said they were in shocking state, and squealed like crazy on the way out, and were almost seized, so clearly they had either never been changed or the engine has got some issue that I have yet to discover. Great. Then he tells me the wheels are out of balance, not sure how he knew to be honest, or whether this is just something they say to everyone to bump up sales, but I knew this was true cos I had already experienced the wheel wobble thing and been hearing a little knock from the nearside front. So I get the wheels balanced and he tells me all 4 wheels are badly out of balance which would explain why the front tyres have got uneven wear on them (the chap did not know I had only had the car 8 weeks at this point) and I should get them checked more regularly, so they begin to do the balancing taking off the wheels etc and then they start to check the alignment and tracking and 5 minutes later come back and tell me they cannot do it because the steering is loose, well he said it was n/side inner tie rod has excessive play in it, and that is making the steering impossible to centre and thus impossible to align. Oh, really, blimey, he asks when it was MOT'd cos it will likley fail and I should think about getting it done before hand, I said May 26th, or about 1500 miles ago, and he says, oh, yeah, mmm, and explains though there is huge incosistency with quality of MOTs and Services, the issue would almost certainly have been present when they MOT'd it back in May, and should have been listed as an advisory at the very least, even if the dealership did not want to fix it. Now I know dealing with the motor trade is fraught with issues, incosistencies, lies, jobs paid for that never get done and more, and it is tough to know who to beleive, so I am not really sure whos fault is what, all I know is this, I have commited myself to almost £10000 worth of car, I am only 2 months in and am alreayd having issues, so I am not overly happy about it. OK, so my question is this, or questions, firstly have I got any ground here? Have I got any case? I would like to get a refund on the service as I do not beleive this was ever done, though I accept this may prove difficult to show with any compelling force, I would also like them to refund me for the spark plugs and installation, I would also like them to pay for the wheel balancing, again I can see this may be a difficult one to prove, but the one thing they should absolutely pay for in my mind is the repair of the tie rod and the wheel alignment and tracking. Next, who do I tackle about this? Should I tackle BAC? or should I approach Alphera/BMW as I have a credit agreement with them, and assume as they technically own the car that my deal is now with them? Any advice on how to proceed with this is most welcome. Thanks in advance. Mr B pix.pdf

So, I just checked, and the money is in the bank . . . Awesome.

Hi BankFodder, thankfully, I had and also had managed to dig up a page from the Google cache from the 20th May too clearly showing the word Navigation... Anyway, Buyacar have apologised and made the offer, which I am happy with, so I will update you once the money hits the bank. Best wishes

Hi all, the company have just called me and offer me £500 to get myself a sat-nav... So if admin team want to scratch this topic from the record, please feel free... If not then thank you anyway

Hey everyone, I am hoping I can get some guidance with a car I recently purchased. I have been looking around for a newer car and thought I would check out those internet car seller folks. I found a car I liked and the description said it had all the things I wanted, so I paid the deposit, applied for finance, which I got, and opted for a PCP contract, paid my deposit and got my order confirmed. The car was delivered on Monday 1st June. First I must say that overall I am really very happy with the car, it is almost exactly what I wanted, I am delighted with the general condition, the way it drives and would not be too keen on letting it go if I have no need to do so. So, the first thing, it was just under 700 miles over the quoted mileage, and I know that's not a lot. Still, that's not the point, the number is excessive, considering the place it came from is only about 200 miles from me. I have spoken to them about the mileage. They said it was a clerical error, which I do not believe, they have however agreed to refund me for 400 miles, which I decided to accept as I figured at least they have agreed to pay for just over half of the miles and did not want to be too unreasonable about it. The second thing, and this is the one that is really the stumbling block. The cars headline said: 'FORD FIESTA HATCHBACK 1.0 EcoBoost 125 Titanium X Navigation 3dr'. Though the full advert is no longer visible, part of it still is, https://www.buyacar.co.uk/ford/fiesta/fiesta-hatchback/1-0-ecoboost-125-titanium-x-navigation-3dr-73955 and this is the car I bought. So after checking it over upon delivery, and going around it with the delivery chap, all looked fine, and I decided a little drive was in order. So off I went to put some fuel in, and while at the fuel station figured I would check out the sat-nav and this is where the problem is, there is no sat-nav. I checked the book, there is no slot for the navigation sd card, no button to turn on the nav, aka, no nav, none. So I emailed them, and the response I got was: 'Thank you for your email, and I am sorry to hear you are not fully happy with your new purchase. This vehicle was not advertised with Sat Nav, so I am unsure where you feel you read the description you have provided?' ... ... 'In regards to the description of the vehicle, I have checked this on the order form, and the finance documents that were both sent to you and signed and the description of the vehicles reads as FORD FIESTA 1.0 TITANIUM X 3d 124 BHP hatchback.' So I have pointed out the fact that there was not only a headline stating that the car was Navigation version but further, down the page, there was also a mention of it. I also said to them, despite me signing said documents, I felt no need to recheck it because the wording navigation appeared several times in the advert which was enough for me to accept it was a version with navigation. I also said, the order form nor the finance documents also make no mention of other stuff either like climate control, automatic folding mirrors, infact they do no mention any features, only that it is a FORD FIESTA 1.0 TITANIUM X 3d 124 BHP hatchback, so I have refused to accept this as an excuse and an attempt to lay the blame for this mistake at my feet. I honestly thought I was purchasing a car with sat-nav, based on the information provided by them. I am awaiting a call from them but they have so far today failed to get in touch so figure I would use this waiting time to ask some of the more experienced members about their thoughts on where I stand with this. Am I in a position for example to ask that they fit sat-nav? If they ask for the car back and put me in a position with no car again how does this work out? Am I flogging a dead horse? Any advice please would be very much appreciate. Thanks all.

Thnx DX, I am not planning on going via a CRA approach, I am going to go with either the battery replacement, likely from eBay, your offer, which seems strangely attractive, or the service from Nextbase. As I say, I just thought I would ask, and after reading the first couple of responses I had decided the best route was one of those mentioned above... Best wishes. MB

Hi Renegadeimp, nope, and nope, and nope again. You have made an incorrect assumption, aka you have the wrong person, wrong post, aka, nothing to do with me, I have not posted this anywhere else. I did contact the support at Nextbase who have said they will send me a battery for £10 and instructions to fix it, which is fine if folks feel capable enough to take on such a task and this may well be a way to go. Alternatively, they can do a fix for £31.20 which takes 7-10 working days, which is likely how I will go. As I say, this was via email, not Facebook, which I rarely. I was just wondering what other CAG members thoughts were on were trying to tackle the manufacturer with such issues, as it is clear this should not be happening and thought I would ask before deciding whether to take it on or just move on. Best wishes MB