PCN Burton from Parking Eye

[Kattii]

Please help!!!

 

I am so clueless on whether I can refute my PCN or not. I entered the car park and was didn't notice the signs (not to say they weren't there but I was attending a hospital appointment and my mind was elsewhere).

 

My appointment ran 2 hours over what it should have done and nobody in the hospital was around to even speak to about the time. I was originally going to complain to the hospital for their poor care (as were 2 other patients at the time) but I didn't as when it was over I just wanted to leave.

 

I went over my ticket by 2 hours and 40 minutes. They have CCTV images of my vehicle entering and leaving the car park however you cannot make out who is driving.

 

I am hoping I can contest this as they want £70 from me for over staying what would have cost about £4 in total!!! Is this allowed and can anybody please please advise the best way to deal with this. Its making me feel ill and im worrying ill go to court.

 

If anybody can help with a template or even some advice I would be so grateful.

Kat

Edited November 25, 2013 by honeybee13
Formatting.

[honeybee13]

Hello and welcome to CAG. The forum guys should be along later.

 

Who is this PCN from please?

 

My best, HB

[Kattii]

HB,

 

Thanks for replying...its Parking Eye car park management.

 

Kat

[silverfox1961]

Hi Kat and welcome to CAG

 

With Parking Eye, they are tricky to sort so you must appeal (if you are still within the timescales)

 

Once they turn down your appeal-and they will, go to POPLA. They have been slapping PE recently.

 

This is not a fine, it is an invoice.

 

If you don't mind, I will add Parking Eye to your thread title. That will have the many PE haters popping in

[Kattii]

HB,

 

That's no problem thankyou. So you suggest I appeal? I am within the timescales but have you any idea the likelihood of them backing down? if I am unlikely to win I shall pay as I really don't want the hassle its worrying me too much, and I dnt really know how to construct a letter that will deal with this properly.

Kat

[silverfox1961]

Please read as much as you can about Parking Eye. These 'parking tickets' are nothing of the sort. They try to mug the innocent into paying what they believe is a 'fine' by using official looking toilet paper.

 

I would say that the amount they are 'charging' is not a true reflection of their costs in this matter

[Kattii]

OK, I will appeal now. Thankyou for helping both

[armadillo71]

Which hospital is this? Is this the hospital car park?

[Kattii]

its Burton hospital in Derbyshire, the car park apparently is privately owned. The thing im not sure about is if I appeal, should I say this charge is too much and not reflective of your loss or ask for proof it was me driving? If I go with the loss of revenue, surely I am almost admitting it was me but disagree witht the charge?

[armadillo71]

You appeal as the registered keeper by saying that you are not liable for this charge. Please cancel the parking charge notice or let the independent appeal service POPLA decide.

How do you pay for parking at the site?

[Kattii]

And state I wasn't the driver? you buy a ticket from the meter for a period of time, and display it on your car, you also type in your reg when you get the ticket.

[armadillo71]

And state I wasn't the driver?

No. You were sent the parking charge notice as the registered keeper. So appeal as the reg keeper saying you are not liable....

[Kattii]

OK I will give that a shot thankyou ill keep this updated with the response

[esmerobbo]

How many days after the event did you receive the notice to keeper?

[ericsbrother]

As you had a complaint about the poor standards of the hospital I would be adding this to your complaint and inform the hospital management you want to go down a formal complaints route.

If you want to appeal to PE against the charge we need to know how long after parking did you receive the charge notice through the post and how was it addressed? to you as registered keeper or to you as driver? PE usually do the former. The land is owned by the hospital trust or the NHS so PE have a contract to "manage" the car park. Also you mention pay and display facilities, did you attempt to pay or were you requested to at any point? What facilities are there for paying and what terms are written on the signage for coping with an overstay? These points are important as if the terms of the contract you have supposedly entered do not allow for such things then the contract is unfair and unenforceable. The hospital trust/management can be asked for a copy of the contract as a FOI request, which they will turn down as being "commercially sensitive" but it will be logged that the request was made and if you do this and get knocked back perhaps others could make a FOI request and if it is reported that the hospital management have had dozens of the same request then the trustees will have to wonder why.

[Kattii]

Ok Guys,

 

I received (on the same day) two copies of the original PCN dated exactly 8 days following the car park incident. I have since received another one 9 days later as I ignored the first.

First and foremost, since yesterdays discussions I have contacted parking eye to inform the I wish they cancel the invoice as I am not liable. I am aware they will no doubt pursue this further as I provided no core reason as to why I am not liable I only wanted to let them know I was going to argue it.

So..... my options now, await their response and in the mean time do you suggest I contact the hospital PCT and explain my upset and dissatisfaction in hope that they contact parking eye themselves to lift the charge?

I notice a template on this thread about what I could ask them to provide should I wish to refuse payment, is this template any good and relevant in my case? any comments would be fantastic and I am relieved to see how many others are affected and troubled by these RIDICULOUS attempts to scare people who don't know any better.

Many thanks

Kat

[Kattii]

In response to ericsbrother, I did pay for 1-2 hours for what I thought my appointment time should be, ive been before and it was very short and saw no reason for this appointment being any longer.... since getting to the ward I needed to be on I was sat down in a room with no facilities no TV, no mags and most importantly NO STAFF to speak to, other patients in there felt the same and also commented on the car parking meter. " and a half hours later I was seen after a long and traumatic wait for treatment. Therefore my original ticket was invalid for the time spent in the space. I will be honest, I didn't even notice the signs as I was nervous about my appointment in the first place and certainly nothing about overstay. Again are these rules or regs I can ask the hospital to provide for me if I write to complain?

Thank you for your input

Kat

Edited November 26, 2013 by Kattii

[ericsbrother]

You cannot complain to the hospital just about the parking, they will just ignore you as they have sold the rights to screw the motorist to a private parking company. The real question is how does the company allow you to pay for an overstay? if there is no mechanism for doing so they cannot claim money from you for doing so and that is why the conditions of parking are an important pointer as to waht to do next.

As part of a formal complaint about your treatment you can add the cost of the claim for breach of parking conditions to your other parts and demand that they compensate you for your loss as a civil tort. Even running the appointment late is good enough unless there are extenuating circumstances but if hospitals were forced to pay out for being late then every penny of their budget would end up in someone else's pocket for compensating their loss and inconvenience.

Read some of the other posts on this forum to get a feel for what you need to do to help yourself as it will save you coming back and being asked for more detail and you having to go and stare at signs again. the exact wording of the signage, ticket machines and even the loose change vending machines is vital.