Parking ticket received on university campus, valid pay & display displayed

[SURFBOY]

Have you seen the PPCs Website?

They use words like "Civil Penalty"

"fine" "Civil Enforcement Officers"

Yet they claim to be compliant with the BPA CoP!

I don't think so!

[peanutsallergy]

Thanks all for your input. I have looked through the student handbook and it states:

 

"You may bring your car to the campus. However, car parking will be for permit holders only and clamping is in operation on this campus for car found without permits. It is very important that you only park in your assigned student parking area, overwise the University Security will issue you with a fine.

 

I believe this to be very vague. No where in the student handbook does it state '"in your student handbook that students are not permitted to park in the visitors car parks.

The response from CPP is attached:

 

Thank you for your recent correspondence regarding the above Civil Parking Notice (CPN). I have considered the case carefully and have decided to reject your appeal on the following grounds;

 

The parking attendant has recorded that your vehicle was parked in a restricted area. It is clearly stated in the signage and in your student handbook that students are not permitted to park in the visitors car parks.

 

I am confident that all signage and the CPN are compliant with all industry standards and to the British Parking Association's code of practice to which we subscribe.

 

You now have the following options;

 

1. Pay the CPN at the discounted amount of �0 within 14 days. Please note after this time the Civil Parking Notice will increase to the full charge of 75.

 

Payment can be made:

 

* Online by visiting

* By sending a cheque or postal order made payable to Car Parking Partnership to: Car Parking Partnership PO Box 597 Northampton NN4 7XN.

* By Debit or Credit Card (except American Express). Please call 01604 625 613 and have your card details and information held in this letter to hand.

 

2. You may also make an appeal to POPLA - The Independent Appeals Service. If you wish to make an appeal to POPLA, information on how to appeal can be found at

 

The verification code you will need in order to appeal to the Independent Appeals Service is 3561273501 and the appeals form you will need is also available on the above link. It is important that you reference the verification code on the appeals form in the required section at the bottom of the form as appeals submitted without this code will not be assessed.

 

If you opt for independent arbitration of your case you will lose the opportunity to pay the discounted offer and the full parking charge of �5 will apply should your appeal be rejected.

 

Please note the independent adjudicator is unable to waive the parking Notice because of mitigating circumstances and a decision will be based on facts and evidence only.

 

If you choose to do nothing, we will seek to recover the monies owed to us via our debt recovery procedures and may proceed with court action against you.

 

Yours Sincerely,

 

The Car Parking Partnership

 

Appeal to popla.

I would include

 

The penalty is not a true pre-estimate of loss. The PPC must supply figures supporting this.

 

The TCPP appeal panel advised that the permitted car parks are in the student handbook.

They are not, and nowhere does it state that parking in the pay and display is not allowed. (If you have the ticket, enclose a copy, to show you parked in accordance with the signage. If you haven't, just state it) Enclose a copy of the students handbook. (Check the signage first)

 

The students handbook states "University Security will issue you with a fine" Why has the PCN come from TCPP, what contract have they to issue PCN's, they must supply a copy clearly showing they have a right to issue tickets to students in that car park, who have complied with the carpark signage.

They must also supply an image clearly showing where that t&c is displayed on the signage if they believe they have the right.

(Enclose an image of the signs, after you check it doesn't state this on them)

 

And anything else that springs to mind.

[ericsbrother]

In most cases,

the university is not the landowner either so it is difficult for the PPC to argue that they have a contract with the landowner

when they really have a contract with the tenant of the land.

 

You could see your student counsellor and ask their opinion of how they interpret the mess in the student handbook

and see if they are prepared to take the matter up with the governing body.

 

Likewise the Student Union should be made aware that its members are being pursued for unenforcable debts based on speculative invoices.

 

It has long being commonly held that the "public" are invited onto campuses by the university charter

and therefore you cannot trespass so no losses or damages as a result of trespass so that cant be argued by PPC either.

 

The university can fine you but it has to call the council together who are responsible for discipline and this cannot enforce the payment of this penalty,

just apply a fine under its own constitution and that is very unlikely unless you bring the university into disrepute

and they are bringing that upon themselves by employing these bozos.

 

The person who contracted APCOA as the car park managers on a university campus for the first time in this country was given a position on its board-

- coinicidence or what!! they only use th PPC's to avoid CGT and risking their charitable status whilst getting a nice little earner from their car park.

 

One university campus I know of has no staff or student parking (save for a couple of disabled slots)

and rents out hundreds of spaces to local residents for sums of up to £10k a year, no background questions asked.

 

A risk to the people on the campus considering that there are people in this world who dont like the freedon of speech that universities offer.

[peanutsallergy]

In most cases,

the university is not the landowner either so it is difficult for the PPC to argue that they have a contract with the landowner

when they really have a contract with the tenant of the land.

 

They don't need a contract with the landowner.

 

 

It has long being commonly held that the "public" are invited onto campuses by the university charter

and therefore you cannot trespass so no losses or damages as a result of trespass so that cant be argued by PPC either.

 

They have invited the public on. They didn't insist they come by car though, in fact they told them to leave it in a specific place if they did bring one with them.

 

 

The university can fine you but it has to call the council together who are responsible for discipline and this cannot enforce the payment of this penalty,

just apply a fine under its own constitution and that is very unlikely unless you bring the university into disrepute

 

Guess you've never owed a library fine to a uni then, or left a mess in the kitchen in halls. Fines are commonplace.

Edited May 14, 2013 by peanutsallergy

[ericsbrother]

They didint leave the communal kitchens in a mess contrary to the UNIVERSITY rules and regs they bought a pay and display ticket to park their car and as they are also "the public" as well as a student there there is no breach of contract. I can buy a residents permit to park in the street where I live and if I do I dont expect to receive a penalty for parking in the street just because I have a driveway that has enough room for a number of vehicles. The offer and acceptance of the money crystallises the contract and the PPC is now in breach of that contract by applying non-existent conditions afterwards. They cannot have it all ways.

[ericsbrother]

Also, the halls of residence wardens levied the fines where I was and that was after a disciplinary meeting with the sub-wardens who were usually postgrad students or final year undergrads. Never had a library fine but owing money, books or keys meant that you hadnt graduated which is a pretty good incentive to make sure that you did as you were supposed to.

[peanutsallergy]

They didint leave the communal kitchens in a mess contrary to the UNIVERSITY rules and regs they bought a pay and display ticket to park their car and as they are also "the public" as well as a student there there is no breach of contract. I can buy a residents permit to park in the street where I live and if I do I dont expect to receive a penalty for parking in the street just because I have a driveway that has enough room for a number of vehicles. The offer and acceptance of the money crystallises the contract and the PPC is now in breach of that contract by applying non-existent conditions afterwards. They cannot have it all ways.

 

You have no idea what the signs say, hence no idea what the contract is.

If you can help with the Popla appeal, go for it, but base it on what we've been told of the situation.

[212ruby]

Thanks for your replies.

 

Tried the verification code that was send by CPP but it seems invalid. Also tried to contact the CPP to advise them of this but the there is no way of contacting them by email as their email address states DONOTREPLY. Tried their website, phone number is for telephone payments only, looks like I'm stuck in limbo!

 

Any Suggestion?

 

Regards Luke

[peanutsallergy]

Thanks for your replies.

 

Tried the verification code that was send by CPP but it seems invalid. Also tried to contact the CPP to advise them of this but the there is no way of contacting them by email as their email address states DONOTREPLY. Tried their website, phone number is for telephone payments only, looks like I'm stuck in limbo!

 

Any Suggestion?

 

Regards Luke

 

Write to them

 

Car Parking Partnership,

PO Box 597,

Northampton

NN4 7XN

 

Keep it simple,

state the Popla verification code is invalid,

you wish them to send a valid code, until it is received no further correspondence will be entered into.

Copy to the uni.

 

 

Get a proof of posting.

[212ruby]

Write to them

 

Car Parking Partnership,

PO Box 597,

Northampton

NN4 7XN

 

Keep it simple,

state the Popla verification code is invalid,

you wish them to send a valid code, until it is received no further correspondence will be entered into.

Copy to the uni.

 

 

Get a proof of posting.

 

Thanks for your help!