Machine ate my money!

[tengumask]

Hi, my first post as i'm new to the forums!

 

Heres my story, i park every day in an all day car park which charges £3.50 standard for all day parking. It is owned by VCS (vehicle control services).

 

I paid £3.50 into the machine, and it came to £3.40, so i pressed refund. No money came out, and the meter reset to £0.00.

 

I had no change left, so left a note explaining this in my window.

 

I also attempted to call the number on the car park gate to no avail as the number was invalid.

 

I recieved a ticket, which i appealed and got rejected. They basically said that I should have called the number on the signs (which i did), and that even though i didnt intentionally park against the rules, i did not display a ticket therefore the PCN is valid.

 

My arguement back to them was that if they can provide me with evidence that the machine on that day was NOT £3.50 excess of the amount of tickets issued, then theyre case would stand if court proceedings were to happen. As it happens, I checked the machine today and it is out of order! I sent them a picture of this.

 

As they are demanding the £80 before this saturday (4th July) and will increase the charge to £120 if it isn't recieved by this date, any response would be much appreciated!

 

thanks

[dx100uk]

ignore

 

its not a PCN its a PPC

 

there is nothing they can do to you

 

do some reading in this forum

 

dx

[crem]

Yo have done more then enough already. Ignore them from now on.

Do not write to them

Do not telephone them

Do not reply to their scamvoices

Do not pay them

[StrawDog]

I agree with the advice given, however I do have reservations in this particular case.The OP states he parks there everyday so what's to stop VCS playing hardball & clamping the car in the future.

[lamma]

the law. it would be illegal and the OP would be justified in 'self help'.

[jed52]

They can't clamp a car because they say you owe them money, they can only clamp as a remedy for trespass, and I think they have to have signs up stating that clamping is in operation on that particular site. Somebody will correct me if i'm wrong jed

[tengumask]

thanks for all your help guys.

 

Can they not go to the DVLA for my details and get their money via that route?

 

I think i'll use another car park from now on to avoid any scare tactics.

 

thanks again

[dx100uk]

did you sign a contract at anytime when you got out your car....no.

 

so there is nothing they can do to you.

 

have a read of a few threads in this forum..its a [problem].

 

dx

[Turtle1000]

Can they not go to the DVLA for my details and get their money via that route?

They can apply to the DVLA for the details of the Registered Keeper and would most likely get them, but as far as DVLA is concerned, that is all they help they will get. After that it is up to them to pursue you.

 

Given you have 'appealled' , they most likely have your details already so going to the DVLA would seem a little pointless.

 

As others have said, as this is not a ticket issued on behalf of the local council, the standard advice is just ignore and they should eventually go away. The norm. is around 3 PPC letters, 2 DCA letters and 2 Solicitor letters depending on the PPC pursuing. As you have 'appealled', you may get a few more as it will take them a little longer to cotton-on that they are onto a loser.

[tengumask]

They can apply to the DVLA for the details of the Registered Keeper and would most likely get them, but as far as DVLA is concerned, that is all they help they will get. After that it is up to them to pursue you.

 

Given you have 'appealled' , they most likely have your details already so going to the DVLA would seem a little pointless.

 

As others have said, as this is not a ticket issued on behalf of the local council, the standard advice is just ignore and they should eventually go away. The norm. is around 3 PPC letters, 2 DCA letters and 2 Solicitor letters depending on the PPC pursuing. As you have 'appealled', you may get a few more as it will take them a little longer to cotton-on that they are onto a loser.

 

Thanks for the info! But christ the 3 PPCs, 2 DCAs, and 2 solicitor letters sound a bit scary. Is there a chance they would ever pay me a visit to the address I provided for correspondence? I suppose I could always just say he doesn't live here!

[wheelergeezer]

Pay you a visit? No. That is trespass, invasion of privacy or harrassment.

 

Of course, if you have a driveway you could have some fun.

 

1. Buy a clamp

2. Put a sign up near your chimney

3. Use some water based yellow paint to put double yellow lines along your road.

4. Invite the neighbours around with their camcorders for an evening of joviality.

5. Invite the parking creeps around to collect what they are due plus a tip.

 

When they arrive, get them to park on your drive and invite them in for a cuppa. Go to the kitchen and then LEGGIT around the back and clamp the bar stewards.

 

What they are due? A CLAMP

Their Ttip? Don't park on private property unless you are happy to pay the £105 removal fee.

 

Call the local newspaper to take some pics.

 

Enjoy

 

 

On the otherhand, just ignore them. you will get a dozen letters all incresasingly more serious with words like....

 

Final DEMAND

Final final demand

Really final demand and we mean it this time

That's it, this is yoiur last chance

We won't go away

We'll take you to court

 

This is your final chance

No more chances aftre this letter

Pay now or else

Cough up

Final cough up chance

Definitely your last opportunity

 

The end.

[londoncass]

Thanks for the info! But christ the 3 PPCs, 2 DCAs, and 2 solicitor letters sound a bit scary. Is there a chance they would ever pay me a visit to the address I provided for correspondence? I suppose I could always just say he doesn't live here!

 

If they turn up ask them to get off yer land! The only ones who should come to your door are court baliffs, and they'll write to you first (not to mention the fact you've got to loose in the county courts too!!) Follow the advice on ere!

[Turtle1000]

Thanks for the info! But christ the 3 PPCs, 2 DCAs, and 2 solicitor letters sound a bit scary. Is there a chance they would ever pay me a visit to the address I provided for correspondence? I suppose I could always just say he doesn't live here!

Whilst a debt collection agency can have a private debt collecter visit you, they are effectively powerless. If you tell them to leave and don't come back, they have to leave your property (or face trespass charges). If they hang around and bother you, they then face charges of harrassment.

 

If you need to, you can tell the DCA your in dispute over the costs. Once advised, the DCA should not persue an account in dispute.

 

The unfortunate thing is that most (if not all) the the above (PPC, DCA, solicitor) are at best 'friends' who probably sit one desk apart, or at worst the same person. Rules and laws mean very little to them and they just prey on your emotions to try and force payment.

 

You are under no impediment to communicate with them. As a private company they have no legal backup to make you do so. And the ticket is no more than an unsolicited invoice - their invitation to treat.

 

You, out of sheer goodwill, have appealled to them advising of their faulty equipment - which they seem to have acknowleged through deactivation of said equipment - yet they still pursue you. That is because the appeal system does not really exist. It should really be termed an informaton extraction system, because thats all they use it for - getting more details to try and forge a case from nothing.

 

So, yes, seven plus letters does sound daunting, but just file them away as evidence somewhere when they land through your letterbox. Console your partner when they get itchy feet over the whole deal and live on in the comfort that the more letters they send to you, the more money they are wasting and just maybe one day they will see the [problem] no longer pays off.

Edited June 30, 2009 by Turtle1000
Incorrect info removed

[tengumask]

Thanks for all your advice guys, I was actually going to call them today to ensure they got my 2nd email appeal. But now i'm going to take the common advice on here, completely ignore anything from them, find a new car park, and collect the nice threatening letters to stick on my fridge.

 

Makes me wonder though, providing you don't get clamped, you'd never have to buy a (private car park) ticket again!

[crem]

Makes me wonder though, providing you don't get clamped, you'd never have to buy a (private car park) ticket again!

 

I'm sure you said that with tongue-in-cheek tengumask, but I'm sure you agree that not paying for valid parking is not supported or condoned on CAG.

 

If you have parked and received a genuine service for the fixed fee you accepted (pay and display) then you should be happy enough to pay for that.

 

If, having done so they try to charge you for having one wheel 2inches over a white line, then you will get all the support you need from CAG members.

[dx100uk]

Whilst a debt collection agency can have a private debt collecter/baliff visit you,

 

naughty!

you used the word bailliff in the same msg as the word DCA!

never confuse the two!

they certainly cannot send a bailliff around,

slip of the fingers i hear you say!

 

dx

[Turtle1000]

naughty!

you used the word bailliff in the same msg as the word DCA!

never confuse the two!

they certainly cannot send a bailliff around,

slip of the fingers i hear you say!

 

dx

Darn it

 

I've edited the post to remove the incorrect info.

I was thinking of adding something about only a court appointed bailiff could do anything with power, but decided against it.

 

Thanks for pointing it out dx

[tengumask]

I'm sure you said that with tongue-in-cheek tengumask, but I'm sure you agree that not paying for valid parking is not supported or condoned on CAG.

 

Yes it was said very much tongue in cheek, I'm more than willing to pay the fees for any service I use, but like you said, i'll seek the advice of caggers when they try to bite off more than they can chew!

[Turtle1000]

Makes me wonder though, providing you don't get clamped, you'd never have to buy a (private car park) ticket again!

The difference being between intentionally defrauding the landowner and being penalised for minor (and often insignificant) errors against unfair terms where the prescribed tariff has been paid and especially where no loss to the landowner has been experienced.

[tengumask]

Update:

 

had my 2nd appeal rejected, they basically repeated what they said in their first rejection - i didnt have a valid ticket on display. They completely ignored the fact that their machine is faulty!

 

Anyway, going to keep to the sound advice on here and just keep their letters for future reference.

 

cheers