CP Plus parking ticket on Morrisons car park

[My Real Name]

Oh god, I'm dithering again now. £15 doesn't seem so bad... I can't be doing with letters and demands and writing letter after letter....

Only you can make that decision.

 

Personally, I would write the one letter, informing them that they can lump it, and ignore anything else (short of actual stamped court documents).

[Al27]

Chances of court: 1%

Chances of a victory in court: 1%

 

I like those odds. All you have to do is completely ignore (my preferred plan of action) or send off one of the template letters after you've received their first piece of absorbant paper.

 

£15 isn't a lot, but why pay anything just because someone is demanding it? If £15 appeared on your electricity bill out of the blue, would you pay?

[angela-27]

If £15 gives you peace of mind, by all means pay it.

 

However if you don't pay them, the odds are you will end up paying £0!

 

If you aren't sure you could send a letter asking on what legal grounds they are asking you to pay them money. They will write back a template letter and not respond directly to your question. But at least it will give you time to think about what to do.

 

It's up to you to make the call - others on here can tell you to ignore til the cows come home, but at the end of the day it's your decision.

[Zayna]

If £15 gives you peace of mind, by all means pay it.

 

However if you don't pay them, the odds are you will end up paying £0!

 

If you aren't sure you could send a letter asking on what legal grounds they are asking you to pay them money. They will write back a template letter and not respond directly to your question. But at least it will give you time to think about what to do.

 

It's up to you to make the call - others on here can tell you to ignore til the cows come home, but at the end of the day it's your decision.

 

I'm such a goody two shoes. I can think of a hundred people who wouldn't pay.

 

I did have a rant at the time but don't know if I've got the balls to follow it up.

[Al27]

Do you really need balls? It only requires you to do absolutely nothing and ignore some letters that drop through your door.

 

The whole system relies on people paying up out of fear. If it didn't, you'd get one letter and then they'd take you to court. But that's the last thing they want to do. It's a percentages game - they only need half the people to pay up and it's a nice easy business to be in.

[Zayna]

Guys, I'm letting you all down, but I am going to pay.

 

It's been a week since they issued the ticket and I feel sick every time I think about it. Once the letters start arriving and the fee goes up, the stress will make me ill.

 

I hope CP Plus rots in Hell.

[lamma]

you are feeding them. what will you do when/if this happens again ? and they ask for 75 or a 100 pounds of your money that they have to right to.

[manwithnoname]

nnnnoooooooooooooooooo dont pay!

 

i got one of these from cp plus in morrisons. (40 pound)

 

i followed the advice from here and didnt sent any money or letters or anything. after 6 weeks i got a solicitors letter telling me they were going to take me to court, reposese the dog, and put a bat up the wifes nightdress, result? - nothing happened.

another 4 weeks later i had a letter from the solicitors again virtually begging me to just give them any money, anything at all, or they would come and have me hung until i was dead and my limbs sent to the 4 corners of the empire as a warning to others. (ok i exaggerate slightly,)

now 6 months later nothing has happened. its a huge [problem] and if you pay the [problem] continues to get another person , (or mayby you again)

 

dont pay and either ignore the letters or send them one put up or shut up letter.

they will 99.99999999% likely not take you to court. if they did this forum would give you a watertight case i am sure. (but that academic, i know of no case of cp plus going to court).

even if they took you to court and won,(as if), as long as you paid, they could not affect your credit rating or send balliffs or anything else.

 

relax, drink your wine and follow the good people on this forums advice.

 

m.w.n.n.

Edited October 21, 2008 by manwithnoname
spolling

[Goldlady]

If it is going to cause you stress and worry then I think you are right to pay, even though you have no moral obligation to do so. I am so used to fighting battles on a daily basis that refusing to pay a parking ticket my OH got was a walk in the park, and I am sure a lot of the others on here are the same. It's OK we will still be your friends if you do pay it - honest;)

[pin1onu]

Guys, I'm letting you all down, but I am going to pay.

 

It's been a week since they issued the ticket and I feel sick every time I think about it. Once the letters start arriving and the fee goes up, the stress will make me ill.

 

I hope CP Plus rots in Hell.

Please don't pay. They cannot keep putting fees up. They are just trying to frighten you. This is really standard form from these companies. I know it can be very frightening but these guys write threatening letters for a living. There is plenty of advice to be had on these forums on how to defend their allegations.

 

Help send them to hell. Don't pay.

 

One thing we do know is that some of these companies pretend to be debt collectors and solicitors in order to put the frighteners on.

 

At best they are entitled to claim actual damages. They may be able to claim filing fees plus travel costs if they actually win. They are a long way from that.

 

What I would do is wait for them to issue court proceedings. If they do and you are still feeling really stressed about it you still have the option of paying up. But given the company they are very unlikely to go that far.

 

I don't know if you have done so but have a read of the Park Charges advice guide in the stickies. After you've read the guide apply it to the letter that you've received and take your stress levels down.

Edited October 21, 2008 by pin1onu

[Al27]

Guys, I'm letting you all down, but I am going to pay.

 

You're letting yourself down. If you want to go through life being a pushover, good luck to you.

[lamma]

by all means - it is your money. But what will you do next time ?

[fabbo]

Had a ticket for parking in CO-OP in FEBRUARY.Threatened with bailiffs and court action.Ignored all their letters.Still waiting to go to court. Interested to see what they come up with regards evidence.

[crem]

I got a PPC invoice in June and haven't even had a letter to RK yet. I feel so deprived compared to you guys. Why am I being ignored by them when I am waiting to be able to ignore their next letter myself.

[TaxedAndConfused]

Guys, I'm letting you all down, but I am going to pay.

 

It's been a week since they issued the ticket and I feel sick every time I think about it. Once the letters start arriving and the fee goes up, the stress will make me ill.

 

I hope CP Plus rots in Hell.

 

Can you send me your address, I have an invoice for you...

[fabbo]

Make no mistake.This is corporate bullying. Don't give in to empty threats. If they can be bothered to take you to court there is plenty of help and advice at hand.Think of it logically. One- they have to prove you were driving. Two-they have to prove you were there for the time of the offence which would need video evidence. Three- the fine is grossly disproportionate to the offence committed. Parking costs about a £1 an hour. You work it out how much going 15 minutes over would cost you?

[Zayna]

Right then, balls to them. And they can send as many letters as they like, it's free toilet paper.

 

I spent good money in that store. I'm not bloody paying for the privilege.

 

:mad::mad::mad:

[lamma]

good stuff. why give free money to low lifes.

[Zayna]

I just want to stay mad, it's getting me down and I still get nervous, thinking they might have me on camera, might start ringing me up...

[lamma]

if they ring just say - hold on I will get him/her. put phone in draw and make cup of tea, read book, eat dinner.. Video is meaningless and they don't 'have you'. the letters are just to trick you.

[fabbo]

Heres an example for you. In the CO-Op they have 2 hours free parking. After that you are committing an offence,right. To prove this they would have to show over 2 hours of video evidence in court. Photographic evidence would not prove anything unless they have a photograph for every second you were there.PROOF is the key.Also you are legally entitled to a copy of any evidence to be used in a case brought against you which has to be sent to you well before any case free of charge.The company acting on the CO-Ops behalf told me they had photographic evidence of my offence. Yeah so what!! photos are STATIC.

 

I would like to add this does NOT apply if you get caught in a council car park or on double yellows.This only applies in PRIVATE car parks.Please park sensibly and safe driving.

Edited October 21, 2008 by fabbo
new info

[lamma]

it is not an 'offence'

[Jezebelle]

Hello everyone

 

I found this forum as I've been given an early xmas present in the form of a charge notice from CP Plus!

 

I just wanted a bit of advice if you'd be so kind - I parked in a Morrisons car park for about 6 hours. I had to leave my car behind at short notice and couldn't find anywhere else to park. It is a free car park but must have a time limit on it - although i've never seen any signs etc.

 

The notice I got was virtually identical to the one posted on here. My crime is overstaying the maximum free stay time. Probably by about 4 hours.

 

Is it worth ignoring this? I feel bad cos I know supermarket car parks aren't designed for non shoppers. The surrounding streets are all no parking between 8 and 6 so I was a bit stuck!

 

Presumably they would have case against me as I clearly outstayed my welcome?

 

Any advice appreciated

[lamma]

free car park, loss is zero. they have no case. ignore them. when they write ignore them some more.

[Dougal16T]

Good morning all,

 

Just a quick addition to the above - I work for Morrisons (not as a car park attendant!!)

 

I have watched the 'attendant' employed by these clowns - he makes every effort to avoid being seen......

 

As far as I am aware there is no employment arrangement with Morrisons (i.e. : the 'attendant' is not paid by Morrisons, nor do Morrisons pay the company. I am not aware of any 'sharing' of the proceeds of the 'attendants' work - but I do know he is employed by the clowns who issue the requests for payment.

 

It is possible that this may be an agreement between Morrisons and these clowns to the effect that the 'attendant' will keep the car park flowing (so to speak) and will be paid from the proceeds of his 'work', and in turn Morrisons will have the dubious benefit of good turnover by the frequent movement of vehicles in and out of the car park - the drivers having been misled into thinking they can only stay for a limited amount of time!

 

As an ex-police officer I agree that the issuing of a ticket is an attempt at theft, and if the Fraud Act 2006 is read I believe that the issuing of a ticket in the circumstances described is a complete offence - and should be reported to the police - BUT I do not believe they would take any action because of the relatively small amount (less than £1,000) involved - even though the Act does not place financial limits, I am sure this would be a 'guidelines for prosecution' matter, and would not be proceeded with.

 

The way around this could be to get a good number of people who have all had tickets in the same car park to complain.

 

All the best to everyone,

 

Dougal

Edited March 2, 2009 by Dougal16T
Quoted incorrect act!!