Private Parking Tickets - General discussion points

[lamma]

video irrelevant. but never lie in these cases. just ignore the PPC.

[martinblueprint]

It does seem like a very simple strategy - to ignore the PPC's letters and demand they proove who the driver was. Sounds like they give up easily!

[mimic51]

With private car parks the ticket comes under civil law and they can only enforce the ticket against the driver not the vehicle owner as I understand it.

[lamma]

even easier to just blank them.

[Ziggywooo]

Hello and I want to start with a million thanks! I got a UKPC fine last week for £70, £40 if I paid within two weeks and I cried! Financially things are tight and it just seemed things were getting a bit better and then this landed on my windscreen! To make the blow harder, initially, (like a nutter) as I approached the car and saw it I thought, oh, lovely, somebodies left a christmas card on my windscreen! How wrong can you be! It was out of utter frustration I cried as I had really looked and hadn't seen any signs bar one in a bay which obviously I had avoided. The worst thing was that there were loads of spaces that I would have parked in had it been clear that I was not to park where I did. So I have worried and worried and, like another lady I read about, was about to post off a cheque for £40 and thought I'll just have a look on t'internet and lo and behold! I am sooooooooooooooo grateful for the information and advice. I have learnt and am empowered. I shall be sending my letter recorded delivery today suggesting that the company takes the issue up with the driver!

What a fantastic forum, I'll be on it for everything now!

Kind regards

Ziggywooo

[mimic51]

Thats great Ziggywooo I wouldnt mind parking tickets if they had reasonable fines as the money they lose is only £2 if your taking up a space so why should the fine be £70 or more thats just greed which I hate.

[martinblueprint]

Ziggywoo, let us know what becomes of this. I'd like to know how it goes.

 

Good luck.

[letshelp]

Hi Ziggywooo and welcome,

 

Make sure you let all your friends know about this site, the more support the better.

regards

[surferdude]

Hi

Just Joined the group after getting a ticket from ukpc in plymouth.

I just want to thank you for your excellent template letters that i will use to fight them.

it seems the key is to hold your nerve against their bully boy tactics and they will give in.

[rox]

I have recieved 4 letters to my home stating I was given 4 parking tickets on different days in october which I was not. I had no tickets on my car and these letters are the first I knew about them.

It was a car park outside a railway station and the company was ncp.

they are not going to believe i never had the tickets which i did not.

[baptiste]

I have a ticket from Securi-t.

 

I was going to do what some have suggested and ignore all of their letters, however I would much rather waste their time and money and I hope that if enough people did this these companies will go out of business.

 

What I was wondering was;

1) I believe they have broken the BPA code of practice in several ways:

by not including required information in the first letter, a leaflet stating 'reasonable cause for the request' and the DVLA complaints procedure.

The 'ticket' also doesn't mention the time that the vehicle was first seen, or it's make.

The first letter also only gave info on payment, it did not mention the challenge procedure as stated in the BPA code.

2)The PCN states that 'It is an offence for an unauthorised person to remove or interfere with this notice', and it states that I was 'Illegally parked'. I believe these points are illegal under the Harrassment act 1997?

 

Can anyone advise, should I mention these points in my second, or any, reply, or just stick with the templates?

 

Here's a link to the BPA Code, it states that personal visits from operators or debt collectors can NOT take place before formal court action!

Edited November 28, 2008 by baptiste

[Ziggywooo]

Thats great Ziggywooo I wouldnt mind parking tickets if they had reasonable fines as the money they lose is only £2 if your taking up a space so why should the fine be £70 or more thats just greed which I hate.

Hello there, I totally agree and having spent hours the other day looking at this site, I changed my mind about telling the UKPC to contact the driver since essentially I was the driver and didn't want to lie. I also want the opportunity to make your point about the exorbitant charge, bullying tactics, lack of contract and how dare they? How very dare they?! I am so furious that I really want to give them a gob full rather than deny it and I can do this in the full knowledge that they will not extort a penny out of me! So currently, I am composing a letter! Thanks for the support.

[signalnorth]

Go and google and then visit the fightback forum . They specialise in parking ticket advice. They are VERY VERY good! And friendly too! I have no connection with them other than as a big fan of their site and their top notch advice

[nigel comery]

Thanks for the advice Bernie.

I fired the confirmation of keeper letter off to NCP and they have come back with

"every person who enters into a contract with NCP for the parking of a vehicle at our sites, whether by purchasing a ticket or otherwise, does so on behalf off himself and all other persons having any proprietary, possessory or other financial material interest in the vehicle and its contents.

Please note that as a result of this, it is our intention to pursue the registered keepr/owner of the vehicle in the absence of driver specifics"

 

I've now sent them the substatiation of claim letter - I'll post their reply - this one could prove interesting!

[letshelp]

Thanks for the advice Bernie.

I fired the confirmation of keeper letter off to NCP

 

Why? Under what obligation?

 

and they have come back with

"every person who enters into a contract with NCP for the parking of a vehicle at our sites, whether by purchasing a ticket or otherwise, does so on behalf off himself and all other persons having any proprietary, possessory or other financial material interest in the vehicle and its contents.

Please note that as a result of this, it is our intention to pursue the registered keepr/owner of the vehicle in the absence of driver specifics":eek:

 

I would have just asked them to point you in the direction of the legal authority that they intend to rely on to bind a third party to a contract he/she knows nothing about. On second thoughts I wouldn't even bother replying to them!!!!!

 

I've now sent them the substatiation of claim letter - I'll post their reply - this one could prove interesting!

 

They will keep sending you letter after letter now thinking that you MAY actually pay.

regards

[lamma]

"every person who enters into a contract with NCP for the parking of a vehicle at our sites, whether by purchasing a ticket or otherwise, does so on behalf off himself and all other persons having any proprietary, possessory or other financial material interest in the vehicle and its contents. Please note that as a result of this, it is our intention to pursue the registered keepr/owner of the vehicle in the absence of driver specifics" thats a good laugh - they doomed to fail then.

[eightballuk]

Hello all,

 

Joined this site as I am in a similar predicament but there are certain circumstances that may make a difference. I'm going to follow the great advice on this thread and others but just wanted a little more clarification pertaining to my circumstances. Here is my story:

 

The PPC in question this time are National Clamps, they 'police' the private car parking in the housing complex I live in. Each resident has a numbered parking bay and is given a pass to display in their windshield; the pass is designed to loop around your rear-view mirror. Unfortunately due to cold weather the mirror fell off when the glue became frozen and hence the pass was sitting in the foot well of the passenger seat when the PCC came checking!

 

Now: As the bay is actually part of the property I rent, can I follow the advice of this thread? Or can I take the stance that the parking space 'belongs' to me (by proxy of renting it from the landlord as part of my flat) and hence they have no right to clamp a car in that bay as it is on my property. I have signed nothing on moving into the property in regards to following any car parking scheme.

 

It is my space and the car will continue to be parked there throughout following the process on this thread. Do you think it's worth claiming ignorance of the driver at the time?

 

Thanks in anticipation!

[Disgruntled Brit]

Just a quick update on my case back in July (page 2 if anyone's interested!).

 

ParkingEye have not come back to me after my repsonse to CSS Collect so it's all good from my angle. Don't pay them a penny. I'm almost tempted to park there again without a ticket to go through all this again - kind of fun when you know the score. Thanks to the guys on here who put up all the great info and helped out with my numerous and tedious questions!

 

Incidentally, just got out of an Islington Council one too, slightly off topic but shows even they're not infallible.

 

Quick reply to your question eightballuk, I would personally argue that I owned the space (which I reckon you do if it's stipulated in your lease). Might help to speak to the managing agents first and argue the case through them. If you're only renting, give the landlord a call to check any parking arrangements in place.

 

Have you paid your fine and released the clamp yet?

 

If there are signs etc. in the car park it might make things slightly different but I'm sure the other guys on here will know more than me!

[Jason-B]

Thanks for all the advice and info, this forum is a really helpful.

[eightballuk]

I second Jason-B's thoughts!

 

Congrats DB, hopefully I get the same result. I'll follow your advice and try and contact the landlords (who are notorious for not being forthcoming with requests unless there's an issue with their rent).

 

I'm not going to contact the PPC but wait until I receive a letter then tell them unfortunately I did not park the car in the space (even though it's mine and the car still resides there!), and politely advise that the numbered space is technically private property anyway. Bit cheeky I know but they'll make you jump through hoops whatever I say.

 

My partners father got a ticket for stopping on double yellows within the complex and dutifully sent all the required information to the PPC to pay the PCN - They didn't even take the money or follow up at all so that's the kind of company I'll be dealing with I'm not too worried.

 

PS - apologies if I wasn't clear, they only ticketed the car - not clamped.

[Conned Sumer]

Hi Guys

Firstly MANY THANKS a thousand times for having this information on the web, I would certainly be beside myself with rage without it!

 

I apologise if this regurgitates any previous information on there, but I am asking just to make sure nothing is different.

 

Last month, I was subjected to one of these private companies' tickets

with a ludicrous amount of £80 for parking without a permit. The company is VCS.

 

I followed initial advice and made no contact.

I have now received a notice from them asking for the usual inflated costs along with a whole heap of threatening text about court proceedings, and bailiffs.

 

it informs me I have lost my right to appeal, and interestingly requests confirmation of the driver on the back of the payslip.

 

On another point, there is no company number on the correspondence and the payment office is a P.O. Box.

 

My question is, do I just use the initial contact letter or do I have to incorporate paragraphs about driver confirmation?

 

Many thanks

[crem]

 

My question is, do I just use the initial contact letter or do I have to incorporate paragraphs about driver confirmation?

 

Many thanks

 

You don't "use" anything because your next and future actions should be DO NOTHING.

 

Don't write to them again, don't telephone them, and don't for one minute think you are engaged in any type of "appeals system". You are not!

 

There is no appeal and no way of them ever agreeing that you don't owe them millions of pounds and/or that you should hand your first 3 born children over to them for eternal slavery.

[Conned Sumer]

Hi Crem

 

Thanks for your reply

as they have gone to the trouble of getting my details from the DVLA and written to me, should I not even respond confirming I am the keeper but asking them to take the matter up with the driver.

 

Otherwise they will just end up sending more letters and possibly people round

 

I wouldnt have thought staying silent would be successful.

 

cheers for the help

[crem]

Staying silent is usually more successful than engaging with them. There are advocators for both methods in this forum so the choice is yours.

 

By replying though you are only confirming that they have established a link to a real person and that their many letters may eventually grind you down into paying.

 

If you ignore them, they have no idea who, if anyone, they have made contact with.

Edited December 14, 2008 by crem

[Conned Sumer]

Cheers again Crem

I will have a think and surf some more forum posts to decide what to do, its not like I have to reply in 7 days as I dont intend to pay this ludicrous charge