Just received a letter from DCB Legal in response to my evidence request saying "In due course, the Court will order that both parties file and serve all evidence they intend to rely on. We confirm you will therefore receive all relevant evidence in advance of the hearing" Is that legit or does the below apply (from the evidence request template) "You are reminded that as this case is yet to be allocated to a track, CPR31:14 does apply, a refusal to comply because you 'think' at this stage you dont have to comply will be referred against you in any defence." Thabks

Managed to get on after a restart, phew!

Was looking to log on to the MCOL site this eve to submit my defence - I'm currently unable to log in, getting a meaningless error - is this just me or a wider issue with the site? Error id - d447b51c-6522-46b4-919f-d325c2a2c55e

Thanks, thought as much but wanted to double check before I included that point in my defence. Final question for now I think - is there any point in counter claiming or is it more effort than it's worth? I've previously stated in letters that they would risk a counter claim for harassment given their (now 5 year!) pursuit of a debt which is not valid, but I presume I'd have to flesh a lot out in order to do that and I'm aware there's a cost to it to.

Ok, thanks folks - will use the generic defence as linked and keep that aside for if/when I need to flesh things out down the line

Yes and no, they numbered them but didn't separate the points with new lines or anything, was just flowing into one another.

Draft defence - any feedback welcome! The Defendant contends that the particulars of claim are vague and are generic in nature which fails to comply with CPR 16.4. The Defendant accordingly sets out its case below and relies on CPR r 16.5 (3) in relation to any particular allegation to which a specific response has not been made. It is admitted that Defendant was the recorded keeper of the vehicle, the Claimant is not in a position to state if they were the driver at the time. Item 1 & 3 of the PoC is denied. It’s denied that the claimant ever entered into a contract to breach any terms and conditions of the stated private land. As held by the Upper Tax Tribunal in Vehicle Control Services Limited v HMRC [2012] UKUT 129 (TCC), any contract requires offer and acceptance. The Claimant was only contracted to provide car park management services and is not capable of entering into a contract with the Defendant on its own account, as the car park is owned by and the terms of entry set by the landowner. Further it is denied that the Claimant’s signage is capable of creating a legally binding contract. Item 4 is denied, there are no contractual costs and interest cannot be accrued on a speculative charge. The Defendant also contends that the terms of the PoFA Act have not been followed and as such the pursuit of the claimed debt by the Claimant amounts to harassment. Notwithstanding the above on 06 Sept 2021 the Defendant made a request pursuant to CPR 31.14 for the Claimant to disclose its necessary evidence in support of its claim. To this date the claimant has failed to respond to said request. The Particulars of Claim is denied in its entirety. It is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the recovery or any recovery at all.

Hi, I technically never appealed - when communicating with them I've never really mentioned the car being parked by anyone or not, pretty much just said that they have not followed the terms set out by the PoFA and as such any claim is baseless and I will defend it robustly - not sure they could infer that I was the driver from that. Unfortunately neither parent drives and I was the only named driver, however of course people do have third party cover to drive other cars (with permission) so I guess that might help? The "car park" isn't really a car park at all, it's just some garages down a side street - there was no entrance signage from recollection, looking at google street view I'm not sure there's any signage whatsoever any more, so I suspect they no longer even manage that area. I've also had a brief look on the North Lincs Planning Application site and haven't managed to find any planning for any signage in that area, not sure if this helps or not. I'm very much hoping they produce a doctored NTD if I'm honest, that'd make my day. I'll start working on a vague defence ready to submit nearer the deadline but will still keep the NTD issue under wraps.

Evening, Yep, still have the original NTD with the incorrect reg, did not contact them after that being slapped on my car, just waited for the NTK to come, when that (well, notice to "Keeper/Driver") arrived that DID have the correct reg, but like you say was way outside the 14 day period mentioned. The original is tucked away safe in my file of important stuff (along with God knows how many DCA chaser letters for the same thing) ready to produce in court should they actually take it that far. Wondering if there's any chance I can screw them with a counterclaim for harassment based on pursuing a debt they must know they have no claim to, but tbf as long as I can make sure any case is dropped/dismissed I'll be good with that alone!

Thanks, responded on the MCOL site, am working on the CPR 31:14 letter. DCB Legal are listed as the contact for any documentation etc. do I want to send this to them or VCS (or both)? The address given on the claim form was just "The Garages, Scuntho" (their misspelling) If you need the precise location, these are the coordinates according to Google Maps - 53.59411510234528, -0.6469458629122934 Thanks again.

Evening, thanks for reopening so quickly - see claim details below as requested. Name of the Claimant : Vehicle Control Services Limited Claimants Solicitors: DCB Legal LTD Date of issue – 31/08/21 Date for AOS - 18/09/21 Date to submit Defence - 02/10/21 (Saturday, so submit by 4pm on 01/10/21 [NOTE : WHEN CALCULATING YOUR TIMELINE - PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THE DATE ON THE CLAIMFORM IS ONE IN ANY COUNT [an example: Issue date 01.03.2020: + 19 days = 19.03.2020 :+ 14 days to submit defence = 02.04.2014: a total of 33 days] What is the claim for – the reason they have issued the claim? Please type out their particulars of claim (verbatim) less any identifiable data and round the amounts up/down. (Particulars of Claim are in the box to the left of the N1 page 1) The Defendant (D) is indebted to the Claimant (C) for a Parking Charge(s) issued to the vehicle XXXXXXX at The Garages S**ntho The PCN details are 29/11/2016, VCXXXXXXXXX The PCN(s) was issued on private land owned or managed by C. THe cwhicle was parked in breach of the terms on Cs signes (the Contract), thus incurring the PCN(s) The driver agreed to pay within 28 days but did not. D is liable as the driver or keeper. Despite requests the PCN(s) is outstanding. The Contract entitles C to damages. AND THE CLAIMANT CLAIMS £160 being the total of the PCN(s) and damages Interest at a rate of 8% per annum pursuant to s.69 of the County Courts act 1984 from the date hereof at a daily rate of £0.02 until judgement or sooner payment Costs and court fees Total of circa £280 **IMPORTANT** WE NEED TO SEE THE FULL POC MINUS YOUR PERS DETAILS>> NOT AN ABRIDGED VERSION**THIS MUST INCLUDE THE LOCATION What is the value of the claim? (rounded) Amount Claimed £197 court fees £35 legal rep fees £50 Total Amount £282

Hi again, Appears the address change was noted and they've decided to use a different firm? Do I need to actually respond to this one? Thanks in advance. Letter.pdf

Hi there, Couple of things - it's been a fair while of having debt collection letters through every 4-6 weeks or so. Have just had a letter (attached) through from Gladstones Solicitors which appears to essentially be the same as the debt recovery letters (i.e. no actual court action as yet). I presume I just need to sit on this until they actually take the case on? Additionally I am looking to move house in the near future - I'm aware I need to ensure that whoever is chasing me has my latest contact details so I don't get a CCJ against me without knowing - how is best to go about this? Do I just send whichever debt agency/solicitor firm a letter saying what my new address is and for all further information to be sent there? Thanks in advance (and apologies it's not a scanned image, I don't have (and can't really afford) a scanner at home) gladdy letter.pdf

Apologies - have not been able to carry out as extensive reading as I perhaps should have - wasn't fully aware of the distinction between the debt recovery letter and the letter I should expect at some point from their lawyers. I have a bit of free time this weekend (for the first time in a while!) so will have a look at some other posts. Thanks for your help so far & apologies again for my current ignorance!

Hi ericsbrother, So I ignore it and wait until I hear again then? Thanks