Oh dear....my dad has just been issued with a similar PCN from a different branch of Lidl by Athena ANPR. This is like déjà vue. I many need your help again hehe.

I would be delighted to post up the reasons for the Assessor's determination. I hope others find it helpful. Thanks once again everybody. Whoop whoop! Have a good weekend, Boofie. Reasons for the Assessor’s Determination It is the Operator’s case that the parking charge notice was issued for staying beyond a 1 hour 30 minute stay. The Operator submits that a parking charge is now due in accordance with the clearly displayed terms of parking. It is the Appellant’s case that she is not liable because: - The Operator has no authority to issue and pursue parking charges on the land in question and - The Operator has not established a genuine pre-estimate of loss on which it is pursuing the charge. Membership of the Approved Operator Scheme does require the parking company to have clear authorisation from the landowner, if it is not itself the landowner, as to its role in relation to the parking control and enforcement. This is set out in the BPA Code of Practice. However, as with any issue, if the point is specially raised by an Appellant in an appeal, then the Operator should address it by producing such evidence as it believes refutes a submission that it has no authority. The Operator submits that they have a contract with Lidl who are the owners of the land in question however their contract is commercially confidential so they have attached a letter from Lidl to confirm the contract is in place and they are authorised to issue parking charges. I am not minded to find the letter provided as sufficient as it does not mention or specify the land in question but rather that “Athena ANPR have a contract with us to manage the parking arrangements on some of our properties” – the specific property in question has not been addresses. Once the issue is raised by an Appellant, it is for the Operator to demonstrate that it has authority over the land in question. Consequently, I must find that the Operator has failed to produce sufficient evidence to refute the Appellant’s submission that it did not have authority to issue a parking charge notice. Accordingly, I must allow the appeal.

Our POPLA appeal has been successful! I'm so pleased! It was accepted on the bassist that Athena did not have authority to issue the parking charge notice. I want to say a big thank you to everybody who has helped me. I'm very grateful! Boofie

Thank you ericsbrother for your reply. I have made a couple of tweaks based on your advice. Armadillo, that was a typo. Changed to unredacted! I will let you know the outcome, Boofie

They have included photos of signs. I can't confirm the signs are identical to the ones at the car park, without going back to the site and comparing the two. I haven't appealed on the basis of the signs, but I can still post them up here if you tell me how to. I have gone through their evidence pack and tried to pick holes in it. I have written a response below (it repeats much of what I said before, but adds a few extra comments based on their evidence). The appeal date is soon. Can I still submit this? Thanks again everyone! Dear Sir or Madam Following receipt of the evidence pack from Athena ANPR, I would like to submit the following response to be considered at the POPLA appeal. Firstly, in the event that the charge is being issued as a contractual charge, I required Athena ANPR to provide proof that the charge is fair, reasonable and not punitive. In the evidence pack, Athena ANPR have claimed the £90 is a contractual charge, but have failed to provide any proof that the charge is fair, reasonable and not punitive. Moreover, they do not dispute that they have not provided any kind of payment mechanism on site if the driver wishes to stay for longer than 90 minutes. I again maintain this is a purposeful and unfair attempt to make a party pay excessively for an event that would normally be considered breach of contract. In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I again contend that the £90 charge is punitive and a non-enforceable penalty. Secondly, I required Athena ANPR to produce to POPLA the contemporaneous and full redacted contract between the landowner and Athena ANPR that authorises them to issue parking charge notices. In their evidence pack, by their own admission, they have failed to provide this. Instead, they have included a letter dated 20th March 2013, which is clearly neither a contract nor contemporaneous. The content of the contract therefore remain unknown, even if it were still valid at the present time, or indeed if it existed in the first place. I note that the letter provided does not in any way confirm that Athena ANPR has the authority to issue parking charges at the xxxx site. The letter is out of date and lacking in specific detail with regards to location. Moreover, it is signed by a Mr. Adam Rendell, an IT Director, rather than a person of legal standing, such as Solicitor or Company Secretary, and it is doubtful Mr. Rendell is in a position to comment on legal matters. Given the refusal to provide contractual proof, I again contend that there is no contract with the landowner that entitles Athena ANPR to levy these charges and to pursue these charges in their own name in the Courts, and Athena ANPR therefore has authority to issue these charge notices. I again respectfully request that the appeal is upheld, and the charge dismissed. Yours faithfully

Help, we have just received Athena's evidence pack. They appeared to claiming a contractual charge. Do I need to do anything? Boofie

You are very welcome, labrat. The abbreviated version is: Dear Athena ANPR Backatcha! Love Boofie Hehe...good luck with your appeal.

F16 and armadillo, thank you.

Thank you armadillo. I have added the line you suggested, and submitted the appeal letter. Do I need to do anything else, or just sit back and wait? The site refers to submitting evidence, but I have no other evidence to submit that I am aware of. Boofie

Thanks everyone. How does the following look? Dear POPLA I am the registered keeper of vehicle registration xxxxxxxxx and I contend that I am not liable for the alleged parking charge. I wish to appeal against the notice on the following grounds: 1. Athena ANPR have failed to clarify whether the charge is for damages arising from breach of contract or a contractual charge. 2. If this is a claim for damages, I require Athena ANPR to provide a full breakdown of genuine pre-estimates of loss to the landowner that this charge represents. Obviously, business running costs do not apply. I contend that the landowner and Athena ANPR have suffered no loss on an alleged overstay in a free car park. 3. If this is issued as a contractual charge, I require Athena ANPR to provide proof that the charge is fair, reasonable and not punitive. I submit that Athena ANPR has not provided a mechanism on site if the driver wishes to stay for longer than 90 minutes, and it is an unfair attempt to make a party pay excessively for an event which would normally be 'breach of contract.' I contend that the £90 charge is punitive, and an unenforceable penalty. 4. Finally, I require Athena ANPR to produce to POPLA the contemporaneous and unredacted contract between the landowner and Athena ANPR that authorises them to issue parking charge notices. I contend that there is no contract with the landowner that entitles Athena ANPR to levy these charges and to pursue these charges in their own name in the Courts, and Athena ANPR therefore has no authority to issue charge notices. I therefore respectfully request that my appeal is upheld and the charge dismissed. Yours faithfully The Registered Keeper

My wife has received a reply from Athena. They have predictably rejected the appeal. Their letter contains a POPLA code. Bizarrely, it refers to my wife as the driver, although this has never been confirmed. It is obviously some kind of computer-generated template. We now wish to appeal through POPLA. Is there a standard letter we can use and adapt? This is al new to me. My wife would rather pay £90 than face court. Personally, I would rather burn £90 than give them a penny! All advice is appreciated. Boofie

Thank you for your responses. I think I will wait for a reply back from Athena and take it from there.

Hi Amardillo The appeal is written as registered keeper, who is my wife (she was also the driver at the time, but we have declined to name the driver). We sent the letter within a couple of days of receiving the PCN, so there is still some time to run (I understand they have upto 35 days to issue a popla code). The appeal is based on Athena not being the land owner, and therefor not having the right to issue the charge, and the charge not being representative of losses anyway, since it is a free car park. I have just read that Athena and other comapnies denying they received an appeal, then trying to enforce the charge.

My wife recently received a PCN invoice from this company, after over-staying in a Lidl car park beyond the permitted 90 minutes. I have written and posted an appeal letter to Athena on her behalf, which I posted one week ago. Unfortunately, I do not have proof of posting. Should I follow this up with an email to them or just wait for a response. My concern is they may claim they never received the appeal. I appreciate your advice. Boofie.

Hello I have noticed that there appears to be some confusion about what is and what isn't included in a CRB check. CRB has now been replaced by the Disclosure and Barring Service. I have just had an Enhanced check done this month. Below, I have listed the individual headings as they appear, word for word, on the Enhanced Certificate, which was sent both to me and my employer. Each heading is inside a box, under which information is recorded if relevant. Otherwise, the text simply states, 'NONE RECORDED.' The five headings are: Police Records of Convictions, Cautions, Reprimands and Warnings Information from the list held under Section 142 of the Education Act 2002 DBS Children's Barred List information DBS Adults' Barred List information Other relevant information disclosed at the Chief Police Officer(s) discretion I hope that helps. Boofie