Thank you so much for all of your replies. Very much appreciated. I've received a letter from UKPC. "We understand that having submitted all of the information to POPLA, that they have declined your appeal, finding in favour of UK Parking Control Ltd. Accordingly, payment of £100 should be paid to us within 28 days of the date of this letter. Failing to do so will result in the debt being passed to our debt recovery agents. If that becomes necessary, the amount due from you will increase to £160 in accordance with the terms and conditions of parking which were clearly displayed on our signs. Should you then fail to pay our debt recovery agents, court proceedings may be issued against you for the sum of £160 together with a claim for costs, court fee, and any interest that arises from the courts decision. We hope that you will take this opportunity to pay the outstanding sum due of £100 within the next 28 days" What I can't understand from all this, is, aren't POVLA supposed to know what they are talking about, know the rules, be up to date on current legislation etc. and give an open and honest verdict? If so, how can they possibly have come up with this decision? Surely it makes an ass out of the whole system. Also, who is paying POVLA / Solicitors?? They won't be doing it for nothing, that's for sure. Thank you so much for your help, With kind regards, Julie

Thank you for your reply. I've just been through the paperwork, and notice that I spoke on line to 'Argos'. I spoke to Dominic, who said that it was nothing to do with Argos, and that the land is not owned by Argos. I should "sort it out with UKPC". If that is the case, then that's fair enough, BUT, they should not be printing their receipts with the advice that you can park on land which they do not own. If they hadn't told me that it was ok, then I would NEVER have parked there, and would have taken notice of the signs on the walls. I can't begin to imagine how much money has been made from this, and feel that it needs to stop. I'll wait for the call to go to Court. Thank you for your support. Much appreciated, Regards, Julie

Well, here I am again, with yet another update regarding my parking outside the rear of Argos 17 months ago. Today I received an email from Wright Hassall solicitors (POPLA) My appeal has been rejected, and it is their final decision. Copy of email ...... "We have been appointed by the British Parking Association (“BPA”) to act as an independent appeals body, under the brand of Parking on Private Land Appeals (“POPLA”), in respect of the Appeal and to consider both the Appellants and the Car Park Operator’s positions before providing a decision to the parties. We are not instructed to act on behalf of either party. We confirm that we have considered the appeal, taking into account all of the evidence at hand and applying the prevailing legislation and with reference to the BPA Code of Practice, and have decided to reject the Appeal on this occasion. To avoid further action, including Court action, the Appellant can make payment to the Car Park Operator in the next 28 days. The Parking Charge Notice (“PCN”) will not be cancelled. Reasons for dismissing the Appeal • The Appellant stated in the Appeal that the amount of the parking charge is unreasonable. Pursuant to the guidance set out in the Supreme Court’s decision in ParkingEye v Beavis and in accordance with the BPA Code of Practice, a reasonable charge would be £100.00. As the charge the Car Park Operator has imposed is equal to or less than £100.00, we have no option but to reject the Appeal. • The Appellant stated that they were a customer of Argos at the time of the contravention, however the signs clearly state “a valid parking permit must be clearly displayed at all times” the appellant did not display a permit and was therefore in breach of the Terms and Conditions of the car park. Accordingly, the Appeal is rejected. To the Appellant To avoid further action, including Court action, the Appellant can make payment to the Car Park Operator in the next 28 days. The Parking Charge Notice will not be cancelled. To the Car Park Operator As the Appeal has been rejected, you must allow the Appellant 28 days to make payment. If payment is not forthcoming, you may take further action to recover the PCN. This is the final decision in this Appeal. We are not able to respond to any future correspondence from either party, nor are we able to provide any information to either party over the telephone. Yours faithfully" I can't begin to say how angry I am by it all. I'm particularly angry at Argos, whose fault it was in the first place, to give me permission to park there, when in fact they had no right to do that. if anyone can offer me any help as to what I need to do next, then I would be very grateful. T he last thing I feel like doing right now, is paying them a single penny, and this whole business really sits in my craw. It's not just for me, its for all those other people who have been 'had' in the same way. I'm not going to give in quietly, that's for sure! With kind regards, Julie :o)

I'm confused. I've been trying to find out information, and I've read that Right Hassle have indeed taken over POPLA, even though as a firm of solicitors, they are well known for chasing debts, and being in the pockets of parking companies. They can't possibly be 'independent'. From the way the letter reads, they are going to be the ones who decide if I have to pay the fine or not. The letter isn't asking me for money, it's telling me that they will assess my appeal based on the evidence they have before them.

Well, it's a year down the line. I'd hoped that this was all forgotten, but oh no, it's come back to haunt me! I've received a letter from solicitors, saying that they have been appointed by BPA to act as an independent appeals body. I thought it might be a hoax, I mean who in their right mind, would call solicitors 'Wright Hassall' ???????!!!!! they're giving me just 7 days to submit any new information. I've got no way of checking if the information they're using is correct, and I felt like the tone of the letter, is FAR FROM being independent. I am so sick and tired of this, I feel like they've already won. If I have to pay just one penny, then I'm going to go after Argos with everything I've got to get THEM to compensate me for all the stress that this has caused over the last year. To say I'm livid is an under statement! (Apologies for the rant, but I received the letter today and haven't calmed down yet!) Thanking you for any advice you may have to offer, With kind regards, CurlyMops

That's me signed, and placed it on Facebook.

??? Oh ...... I had no idea that all these changes were being made ...... I'm really shocked!

Well, after all this time, I've been sent an email from POPLA ...... here is a copy of it .... "As you may be aware, a case concerning parking on private land, ParkingEye Limited -v- Beavis, has now been heard by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. However, a decision is not expected for some time. Where either party has requested an adjournment or where it appears to the Assessor that a POPLA appeal raises the same issue as in the above case, and there is no other ground upon which the appeal can be determined, the matter will be adjourned. Accordingly, your appeal is adjourned to a provisional date for determination of Monday 9 November 2015. In the meantime, no enforcement action can proceed once a case is registered at POPLA, before the POPLA appeal is determined. Further, there is absolutely no requirement to pay any sort of ‘administration charge’ to the operator, in order for the case to be taken out of the list. You should be contacted again after the decision of the Supreme Court is handed down. Yours sincerely" I had no idea that the case had been adjourned ..... but anyway ... it would appear that the parking company must have adjourned it, but nobody thought it might have shown courtesy to let me know ..... never mind. So I'm assuming that they think that the outcome to the court case will mean that they have more chance of winning ...... ...... never mind that this has been on going since March, causing untold stress. Sigh ... anyway .... thought I'd let you know about the update ... if they keep this up, i'll have died of old age by the time it's sorted ....... Oh Joy!!! Would I love to see their faces then! (Apologies for sick sense of humour)

Thank you all for your replies ..... I've not been told when the appeal is likely to take place. I'll let you know when I next hear anything. Thank you all once again for your support, Kind regards, Julie

Good Evening, I've just received an email from POPLA which says it's for information only. It's 35 pages long, and consists of the information I've given them and the information the parking company have given them. The parking company are saying that Argos had no right to tell me to park behind the shop, as they do not own the land. they also go on to quote all sorts of things ...... cases which have been taken to court where it's been decided that it is ok to charge the amounts .. and on and on. Most of it is in a 'law lingo', which is totally alien to me. It's about time they were made to use language that people can understand. I'm going to assume that I don't have to do anything at this point. I'll await the conclusion. If I get made to pay .... then I will be on the tail of Argos ....... the mood I'm in at the minute, I'm going to hang draw and quarter them. How dare they say it is alright to park somewhere where they have no authority over! Anyway ..... just thought I'd let you know where I'm at ..... :o) Kind regards, Julie

Thank you Beesnees and Armadillo71 :o) I've taken on board your comments, and re-jigged my letter to incorporate everything you've said. Your time taken to help me (and indeed everyone else who has contributed!) has been much appreciated. I've sent my appeal off, along with copies of the receipt and the thing which was stuck to my windscreen (ticket / charge / hopeful invoice ....?) I'll let you know how I get on. If I fail, it will be interesting to see what tricks they have when it comes to getting Blood out of a Stone! Thank you all once again, With kind regards, Julie :o)

Well then, Thank you all for the information and support re: POPLA. I've tried to condense all the information in to a letter, which I'll put on here for you to see. Hopefully I've not misunderstood any of it, or missed bits out . ... If I have, please feel free to let me know, and I'll correct it. My intention is to email it to POPLA on Monday. I've been putting off writing this letter, as whilst I can talk the hind legs off a donkey, when it comes to putting my thoughts on to paper, it takes me a damn sight longer!!! Must be a throw back from having bright red and green pen marks scrawled all over my work at school, though hopefully it helped me to 'get it right' in the end. Here it is then ..... I await your thoughts :o) Dear POPLA I am writing to you for your help. I have been issued with a Parking Charge, and have been in contact with UKPC to explain that I had permission from Argos to be there, (with proof), but they still want me to pay the parking charge. I am therefore writing to you for your help to sort this out. On 22 - 3 - 2015, I visited the rear entrance of Argos, in order for me to pay for, and collect a heavy and bulky item which I had ordered on line. It was a Sunday, the car park had many empty spaces, was very quiet, and I was there for a very short time, around 5 – 10 minutes, whilst I went in to the shop to pay for the item, and to let them know that I was parked at the rear entrance for them to put the item in to my car. When I returned to my car, the parking charge ticket had been placed on my windscreen. I went back in to the shop to tell them, and ask them to sort it out, but was told that the land did not belong to them, and it was nothing to do with them. If that is the case, then I could not understand why they were telling me that it was alright to pick the item up from their back door. I enclose the receipt as proof of my business there, and as you can see, there is just one minutes difference between the time on the receipt , and the time the parking charge was issued. The receipt states at the bottom, that I should "Collect your goods from the back door", which is what I was doing. . The time the vehicle was parked was well within the discretionary period allowed by the BPA's Code of Practice. The car park was not one where you needed to buy a ticket. The amount of the Parking Charge of £60 (now £100) bears no relation to the genuine pre-estimate of any losses that UKPC could have conceivably incurred. I would like to see the contract that defines the legal relationship between the landowner and UKPC. I dispute that any contract exists between myself and UKPC under which they could pursue me for any damages, as I cannot see where I have caused them any loss. I do so hope that you can help me to sort this out. I am enclosing copies of the receipt as proof of my business to be where I was, for the short time it took to enable me to pay for, and have the item placed in my car. If you need any further information, please feel free to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you, Kind Regards, ... etc.

Thank you so much for your replies ..... I'm a bit confused about asking to see the contract? Would I be asking the parking company for this? Also .... if they were so convinced that they are in the right, then why have they dropped the fine to £60? If they are convinced they are in the right, and it has now cost them money, then my instincts tell me that they'd go for the £100. Their letter states "we have investigated your appeal based on the information you have submitted and confirm that this Parking Charge was correctly issued because there are sufficient signs at the Daniel Owen Shopping Precinct warning drivers that should they park their vehicle without displaying a valid permit this will result in a Parking Charge being issued to the vehicle" I'll spend some time wording my letter to POPLA, then put it on here, to check that I have done it correctly, if that is alright? It'll take me a while to word it correctly though. Thank you all once again, Kind regards, Julie

Well, I've received the letter from the parking company (as expected) on 5th June. It contains the POPLA reference number. They are telling me that they are in the right, but I can appeal if I want to. They are reducing the fee back down to £60 if I pay now, or it will go up to £100 if POPLA do not go in my favour. Before I get in touch with POPLA, I thought it would be wise to check with you all to make sure that I do not miss anything out, and any hints and tips to help me. Thank you all once again for your time and patience, With kind regards, Julie

Thank you Plodder and Beesnees .... It's so kind of everyone to take the time to post on here in order to help me. It feels like an emotional roller coaster sorting this out, but I feel better knowing that there is help here. Rest assured that I'll check in here, before having any more dealings with the Parking Company. I really can't thank you enough, With kind regards, Julie :o)