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    • Well barristers would say that in the hope that motorists would go to them for advice -obviously paid advice.  The problem with appealing is at least twofold. 1] there is a real danger that some part of the appeal will point out that the person appealing [the keeper ] is also the driver.  And in a lot of cases the last thing the keeper wants when they are also the driver is that the parking company knows that. It makes it so much easier for them as the majority  of Judges do not accept that the keeper and the driver are the same person for obvious reasons. Often they are not the same person especially when it is a family car where the husband, wife and children are all insured to drive the same car. On top of that  just about every person who has a valid insurance policy is able to drive another person's vehicle. So there are many possibilities and it should be up to the parking company to prove it to some extent.  Most parking company's do not accept appeals under virtually any circumstances. But insist that you carry on and appeal to their so called impartial jury who are often anything but impartial. By turning down that second appeal, many motorists pay up because they don't know enough about PoFA to argue with those decisions which brings us to the second problem. 2] the major parking companies are mostly unscrupulous, lying cheating scrotes. So when you appeal and your reasons look as if they would have merit in Court, they then go about  concocting a Witness Statement to debunk that challenge. We feel that by leaving what we think are the strongest arguments to our Member's Witness Statements, it leaves insufficient time to be thwarted with their lies etc. And when the motorists defence is good enough to win, it should win regardless of when it is first produced.   
    • S13 (2)The creditor may not exercise the right under paragraph 4 to recover from the keeper any unpaid parking charges specified in the notice to keeper if, within the period of 28 days beginning with the day after that on which that notice was given, the creditor is given— (a)a statement signed by or on behalf of the vehicle-hire firm to the effect that at the material time the vehicle was hired to a named person under a hire agreement; (b)a copy of the hire agreement; and (c)a copy of a statement of liability signed by the hirer under that hire agreement. As  Arval has complied with the above they cannot be pursued by EC----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- S14 [1]   the creditor may recover those charges (so far as they remain unpaid) from the hirer. (2)The conditions are that— (a)the creditor has within the relevant period given the hirer a notice in accordance with sub-paragraph (5) (a “notice to hirer”), together with a copy of the documents mentioned in paragraph 13(2) and the notice to keeper; (b)a period of 21 days beginning with the day on which the notice to hirer was given has elapsed;  As ECP did not send copies of the documents to your company and they have given 28 days instead of 21 days they have failed to comply with  the Act so you and your Company are absolved from paying. That is not to say that they won't continue asking to be paid as they do not have the faintest idea how PoFA works. 
    • Euro have got a lot wrong and have failed to comply with the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 Schedule 4.  According to Section 13 after ECP have written to Arval they should then send a NTH to the Hirer  which they have done.This eliminates Arval from any further pursuit by ECP. When they wrote to your company they should have sent copies of everything that they asked Arval for. This is to prove that your company agree what happened on the day of the breach. If ECP then comply with the Act they are allowed to pursue the hirer. If they fail, to comply they cannot make the hirer pay. They can pursue until they are blue in the face but the Hirer is not lawfully required to pay them and if it went to Court ECP would lose. Your company could say who was driving but the only person that can be pursued is the Hirer, there does not appear to be an extension for a driver to be pursued. Even if there was, because ECP have failed miserably to comply with the Act  they still have no chance of winning in Court. Here are the relevant Hire sections from the Act below.
    • Thank-you FTMDave for your feedback. May I take this opportunity to say that after reading numerous threads to which you are a contributor, I have great admiration for you. You really do go above and beyond in your efforts to help other people. The time you put in to help, in particular with witness statements is incredible. I am also impressed by the way in which you will defer to others with more experience should there be a particular point that you are not 100% clear on and return with answers or advice that you have sought. I wish I had the ability to help others as you do. There is another forum expert that I must also thank for his time and patience answering my questions and allowing me to come to a “penny drops” moment on one particular issue. I believe he has helped me immensely to understand and to strengthen my own case. I shall not mention who it is here at the moment just in case he would rather I didn't but I greatly appreciate the time he took working through that issue with me. I spent 20+ years of working in an industry that rules and regulations had to be strictly adhered to, indeed, exams had to be taken in order that one had to become qualified in those rules and regulations in order to carry out the duties of the post. In a way, such things as PoFA 2012 are rules and regulations that are not completely alien to me. It has been very enjoyable for me to learn these regulations and the law surrounding them. I wish I had found this forum years ago. I admit that perhaps I had been too keen to express my opinions given that I am still in the learning process. After a suitable period in this industry I became Qualified to teach the rules and regulations and I always said to those I taught that there is no such thing as a stupid question. If opinions, theories and observations are put forward, discussion can take place and as long as the result is that the student is able to clearly see where they went wrong and got to that moment where the penny drops then that is a valuable learning experience. No matter how experienced one is, there is always something to learn and if I did not know the answer to a question, I would say, I don't know the answer to that question but I will go and find out what the answer is. In any posts I have made, I have stated, “unless I am wrong” or “as far as I can see” awaiting a response telling me what I got wrong, if it was wrong. If I am wrong I am only too happy to admit it and take it as a valuable learning experience. I take the point that perhaps I should not post on other peoples threads and I shall refrain from doing so going forward. 🤐 As alluded to, circumstances can change, FTMDave made the following point that it had been boasted that no Caggers, over two years, who had sent a PPC the wrong registration snotty letter, had even been taken to court, let alone lost a court hearing .... but now they have. I too used the word "seemed" because it is true, we haven't had all the details. After perusing this forum I believe certain advice changed here after the Beavis case, I could be wrong but that is what I seem to remember reading. Could it be that after winning the above case in question, a claimant could refer back to this case and claim that a defendant had not made use of the appeal process, therefore allowing the claimant to win? Again, in this instance only, I do not know what is to be gained by not making an appeal or concealing the identity of the driver, especially if it is later admitted that the defendant was the driver and was the one to input the incorrect VRN in error. So far no one has educated me as to the reason why. But, of course, when making an appeal, it should be worded carefully so that an error in the appeal process cannot be referred back to. I thought long and hard about whether or not to post here but I wanted to bring up this point for discussion. Yes, I admit I have limited knowledge, but does that mean I should have kept silent? After I posted that I moved away from this forum slightly to find other avenues to increase my knowledge. I bought a law book and am now following certain lawyers on Youtube in the hope of arming myself with enough ammunition to use in my own case. In one video titled “7 Reasons You Will LOSE Your Court Case (and how to avoid them)” by Black Belt Barrister I believe he makes my point by saying the following, and I quote: “If you ignore the complaint in the first instance and it does eventually end up in court then it's going to look bad that you didn't co-operate in the first place. The court is not going to look kindly on you simply ignoring the company and not, let's say, availing yourself of any kind of appeal opportunities, particularly if we are talking about parking charge notices and things like that.” This point makes me think that, it is not such a bizarre judgement in the end. Only in the case of having proof of payment and inputting an incorrect VRN .... could it be worthwhile making a carefully worded appeal in the first instance? .... If the appeal fails, depending on the reason, surely this could only help if it went to court? As always, any feedback gratefully received.
    • To which official body does one make a formal complaint about a LPA fixed charge receiver? Does one make a complaint first to the company employing the appointed individuals?    Or can one complain immediately to an official body, such as nara?    I've tried researching but there doesn't seem a very clear route on how to legally hold them to account for wrongful behaviour.  It seems frustratingly complicated because they are considered to be officers of the court and held in high esteem - and the borrower is deemed liable for their actions.  Yet what does the borrower do when disclosure shows clear evidence of wrong-doing? Does anyone have any pointers please?
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    • We have finally managed to obtain the transcript of this case.

      The judge's reasoning is very useful and will certainly be helpful in any other cases relating to third-party rights where the customer has contracted with the courier company by using a broker.
      This is generally speaking the problem with using PackLink who are domiciled in Spain and very conveniently out of reach of the British justice system.

      Frankly I don't think that is any accident.

      One of the points that the judge made was that the customers contract with the broker specifically refers to the courier – and it is clear that the courier knows that they are acting for a third party. There is no need to name the third party. They just have to be recognisably part of a class of person – such as a sender or a recipient of the parcel.

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Mercedes = Rust


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Howdy people,

 

This is my first post so be gentle!

 

I have a 2002 Mercedes Vito with 140,000 miles. I am the second owner after purchasing it in January 2004. The vehicle has full service history via Mercedes Benz Trained independant garage with reciepts to prove

 

My problem is rust - lots of it. This is a well known Mercedes problem so when it happened to me I contacted Mercedes Germany and was instructed to visit my local dealer for inspection

 

The inspection was completed and a "Esculab claim" (complete with detailed pictures) forwarded to Mercedes. Whilst there the guy carrying out the inspection told me that mine was "One of the worst he`d came across" and that there was "clear evidence of paint defects on EVERY panel" which necessitated a full respray - at a cost of £3500!

 

Mercedes Germany rejected the claim as did the Mercedes UK rep who the dealer spoke with regarding my case. They both turned the claim down with no offer of any kind even for a partial repair despite the report and pictures.

 

I also own a 2002 VW Golf and 2001 Peugeot 306 with similar miles and neither has any rust despite being used on the same roads, being parked in the same place - does this mean that a crappy french hatchback has superior bodywork to a supposedly premium brand German workhorse?

 

Question is where do I take my case now - do I need to engage the services of a solicitor?

 

Thanks in advance:)

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Six years old, I dont think you will get much joy now. You try consulting a solicitor to see what they say, but would not hold out much hope. probably cost more in fees than the van is worth.

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I think you are a bit late in your claim, if there was a corrosion warranty these rarely last past 6 years and only the Japanese seem have the confidence in their quality to offer this sort of warranty.

 

If it is the van they really wont be interested.

 

Ring the first owner shown in the log book and ask him about anti-corrosion warranty, it's usually transferable if there is one.

 

A no win no fee solicitor might be a good idea, if they turn it down then you know you have no chance as they only take on cases they know will win and make them money.

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Six years old, I dont think you will get much joy now. You try consulting a solicitor to see what they say, but would not hold out much hope. probably cost more in fees than the van is worth.

 

It is six years old - but has been properly cared for and has never been damaged - surely modern bodywork should last longer than this before looking like it has been washed with acid? My VW of the same age/condition sports ZERO rust - even around the stone chips!

 

My case is not unique - Mercedes of this era are well known now for bad bodywork - even top of the range £60,000 models are not exempt

 

I am determined to pursue this issue - why should Mercedes be allowed to turn their back on their shoddy products because they cut corners in the first place

 

I have decieded to forward a strongly worded letter complete with pictures and a report by a competant bodyshop to Daimler Chrysler UK first and see where that leads

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It certainly should last a lot longer than 6 years. I wonder why the servicing agent or MoT station hasn't brought this to your attention before.

My 10 year old English made car has no rust.

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I think you are a bit late in your claim, if there was a corrosion warranty these rarely last past 6 years and only the Japanese seem have the confidence in their quality to offer this sort of warranty.

 

If it is the van they really wont be interested.

 

Ring the first owner shown in the log book and ask him about anti-corrosion warranty, it's usually transferable if there is one.

 

A no win no fee solicitor might be a good idea, if they turn it down then you know you have no chance as they only take on cases they know will win and make them money.

 

The dealer I spoke with openly stated that repairs can be carried out on vehicles up to eight years old with manufacturer defects - so I am well inside that time frame

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It certainly should last a lot longer than 6 years. I wonder why the servicing agent or MoT station hasn't brought this to your attention before.

My 10 year old English made car has no rust.

 

Precisely

 

The rust (besides the usual stone chips etc) only became noticable in the last 9 months, and progressively more aggressive/noticable in the last 6 months. I have been in contact with Mercedes regarding this issue for the past 3 months

 

Once I get beyond 5 posts I will include some pictures - they are not pretty

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You are within the 6 years covered by the soga so you could try invoking that on the not of merchantable quality condition.

 

Pardon my ignorance but what is a "soga"

 

Where can I find more info regarding "Not of merchantable quality condition"

 

Could my vehicle also fall into the category of "Not fit for purpose" due to the sub standard bodywork

 

I`m just trying to include all the potential angles in my letter

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'Sale of Goods Act' but you would have to change your tack from the manufacturer to the seller.

 

Sale of Goods Act Quick Facts - BERR

 

Do you think your photos will be enough to convince a court:

 

If your claim under the Sale of Goods Act ends up in court, you may have to prove that the fault was present when you bought the item and not, for example, something that was the result of normal wear and tear.

 

What is an inherent fault?

A fault present at the time of purchase. Examples are:

• an error in design so that a product is manufactured incorrectly

• an error in manufacturing where a faulty component was inserted.

The "fault" may not become apparent immediately but it was there at the time of sale and so the product was not of satisfactory standard.

Edited by Conniff
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'Sale of Goods Act' but you would have to change your tack from the manufacturer to the seller.

 

Sale of Goods Act Quick Facts - BERR

 

Do you think your photos will be enough to convince a court:

 

Opinions?

 

Photobucket4.jpg

 

Photobucket5.jpg

 

Photobucket2.jpg

 

Photobucket3.jpg

 

Photobucket6.jpg

 

Photobucket7.jpg

 

My personal favourite:

 

Photobucket8.jpg

 

My VW, same age - ZERO rust

 

Photobucket1.jpg

 

This is a selection, there are lots more if anyone feels they would help

Edited by energysolutions
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My pleasure es - keep us informed of how it goes please.

 

I should mention that if it is on finance then the finance company will be jointly liable.

 

Sorry, no finance although I may have to sell a kidney to finance a respray if things dont go my way!

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I would have expect Merc to electostatically dip their cars like Rover used to do, if they do then they missed this one.

That is not good - did the examiner give a written report backing this up as well as verbally telling you it is the worse he had seen.

 

What version do you have, is it the car or van?

 

If things don't go your way, you wouldn't take it to the dealer for a respray but to a smaller independent bodyshop who do just as good a job (sometimes better) than dealers do.

 

It might be a good idea to pop into a bodyshop somewhere local and get a rough price for the job without telling them what the dealer has quoted.

Edited by Conniff
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I would expect Merc to electostatically dip their cars like Rover used to do.

That is not good - did the examiner give a written report backing this up as well as verbally telling you it is the worse he had seen.

 

What version do you have, is it the car or van?

 

Is that the same as "Galvanising"

 

If so Mercedes did not do this and it has been suggested that this is where their problems eminated from

 

Another theory is that as the vans were built in Spain the quailty of the bodywork/paint is poor and also Mercedes had to change from 2K to water based paint due to H+S reasons and the water based paint is not up to the job

 

My van (MK1 112CDI Vito) is proof that something is not as it should be..............

 

I havent got the report but pretty sure I can get it as everyone I have met/dealt with regarding this issue has been most helpful, would it be prudent to also get a second opinion from another MB approved bodyshop?

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I would have expect Merc to electostatically dip their cars like Rover used to do, if they do then they missed this one.

That is not good - did the examiner give a written report backing this up as well as verbally telling you it is the worse he had seen.

 

What version do you have, is it the car or van?

 

If things don't go your way, you wouldn't take it to the dealer for a respray but to a smaller independent bodyshop who do just as good a job (sometimes better) than dealers do.

 

It might be a good idea to pop into a bodyshop somewhere local and get a rough price for the job without telling them what the dealer has quoted.

 

If things dont go my way I will have no option but to pay for it myself as it will have to be addressed soon

 

I have a couple of friends in the trade and have already spoke with one of them but it will still cost quite a bit for something that I strongly feel I should not have to do

 

I have a friend that does signage who owes me a favour - We have decieded that if Mercedes doesnt offer some assistance I will get the vehicle sign written saying "BUY A MERCEDES AND GET RUSTY BODYWORK FOR FREE" before parking it at the dealership and informing the local rags

 

At least it may stop others from this rusty fate...............

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Is that the same as "Galvanising" - very similar but without the metal coating.

 

If so Mercedes did not do this and it has been suggested that this is where their problems eminated from

 

Another theory is that as the vans were built in Spain the quailty of the bodywork/paint is poor and also Mercedes had to change from 2K to water based paint due to H+S reasons and the water based paint is not up to the job - All european states now use water based, celulose is not allowed any longer.

 

My van (MK1 112CDI Vito) is proof that something is not as it should be.............. I think that it is expected that a van would have been abused more than a car.

 

I havent got the report but pretty sure I can get it as everyone I have met/dealt with regarding this issue has been most helpful, would it be prudent to also get a second opinion from another MB approved bodyshop? Yes, definately get as much paperwork and backup reports as possible.

 

I was thinking that you might need more than one quote submitted if you were to go after the seller, and you would probably like an idea of how much it is going to cost you if you have to pay for it. That's why I suggested that you pop into a local bodyshop and get a rough idea of how much it is going to cost.

 

A shame about having no finance as they would have split it down the middle and that would have made any claim a lot more acceptable to them.

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If things dont go my way I will have no option but to pay for it myself as it will have to be addressed soon

 

I have a couple of friends in the trade and have already spoke with one of them but it will still cost quite a bit for something that I strongly feel I should not have to do

 

I have a friend that does signage who owes me a favour - We have decieded that if Mercedes doesnt offer some assistance I will get the vehicle sign written saying "BUY A MERCEDES AND GET RUSTY BODYWORK FOR FREE" before parking it at the dealership and informing the local rags

 

At least it may stop others from this rusty fate...............

 

I saw someone do that not so long ago with something and he got redress.

 

If you want to keep the cost down, it is the labour that will be the bulk of the price so you could remove bumpers and do a lot of work that they don't have to do.

 

But we haven't got that far yet, lets get that claim into the seller and see what he comes up with first of all.

 

If the seller is the same as the dealer that has been serviceing it and gave you your the report then I would get the paperwork before I let on that I would be asking them to pay for it.

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Regarding the point:

 

I think that it is expected that a van would have been abused more than a car.

The van is a workhorse, yes, but it is inaccurate to say it has been abused - I have drove it for 70,000 miles on the same roads and it has been maintained/looked after in exactly the same manner as the car, probably better as it has been at the garage for minor problems on various occasions.

 

Most of my rust issues are in daft places where rust due to damage would be difficult ie along the metal strip the bonnet rests on or behind the door strips

 

The fact that Mercedes refuses any responsibility despite growing evidence to the contrary shows arrogance on their part

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Strange isn't it - when most cars rusted to buggery in no time, Merc's lasted forever....

Now most cars don't rust like they used to & Merc's are built to the same standards as 1970's BL & Fiat cars!

 

That is so true

 

Supposedly Fiat enlisted the help of Saab to cure their problematic bodywork - and cure it they did

 

Perhaps someone should forward Saabs number to Mercedes?

 

I have heard it said that Mercedes built between 1998 - 2004 were built by penny pinching accountants and not engineers - the results now are plain to see.................

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The van is a workhorse, yes, but it is inaccurate to say it has been abused - I have drove it for 70,000 miles on the same roads and it has been maintained/looked after in exactly the same manner as the car, probably better as it has been at the garage for minor problems on various occasions.

 

 

 

 

That was in general and not a direct reference to your van es.

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I hate to say this, but I do understand the decision taken by Mercedes. None of the pictures you have shown is corrosion that has started from the "inside" of the metal. All of the pictures show corrosion that has started from the outside. What you show has been started from penetration of the paintwork by moisture that has worked it's way inwards. This would have been initiated by tiny chips or scratches. Top coats are waterproof, primer coats are not.

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