rossendales Notice of Enforcement from Rossendales

[mcg68]

Hello,

 

In July I got a parking ticket in Torquay for £40 which was the usual, pay only £20 if paid within 14 days. We live in Glasgow and by the time we got home and unpacked and cleared out the car, we lost the ticket, probably chucked out with all the crisp packets etc.

 

So, I eventually got a letter to say that I hadn't paid the fine and was now liable for a total of £75. So I arranged to pay £25 per month un to 15th Jan. I paid the first installment on 29th October and then I forgot about it until beginning of Feb, so I paid £50 to square it off.

 

Today I have received a "Notice of Enforcement" for an outstanding amount of £7 (which I have never been notified of although Im guessing its for late payment) with another £75 added on for "Compliance Stage Fee". This action was apparently raised at Northampton County Court.

 

Any advice from anyone as to how I can get out of having to pay this £82 as I really cannot afford it.

 

Thanks,

Mick

[silverfox1961]

Hi

I have moved your post from the debt collection forum to the bailiffs forum as that is a more appropriate form for your needs.

 

Hang fire for the experts but in the mean time to stop any further enforcement action and more costs, contact Rossers and see what they have to say.

 

Sending in the bailiffs for £7 seems way OTT to me.

[Bailiff Advice]

After receiving the parking ticket on your car you would have been sent a Charge Certificate and a final document called an Order for Recovery. These documents would have warned you that the debt had been registered at Northampton County Court and that a warrant of control would be issued.

 

The amount of £7 is the court registration fee. Where previously you put your 'head in the sand' you need to ensure that you deal with this matter NOW. You cannot avoid making payment of £82 but you can avoid making payment of the additional fee of £235 which WILL be charged if you fail to either make payment OR to outline a sensible payment arrangement with the enforcement company.

 

Any payment proposal must be made by the deadline given on the Notice of Enforcement. In most cases payment can be agreed over a maximum period of 3 months.

[mcg68]

I have never received either a charge certificate or an Order for Recovery. Since I spoke to them to arrange paying in three £25 installments, I have not had any communication from them whatsoever. Until this.

 

Having already paid off the fine in February, they have issued this warrant on March 19th ???? Why would they do that?

[Fair-Parking]

You live in Glasgow?

 

Then don't pay another penny. Enforcement only applies to England and Wales.

[mikeymack2002]

Was this a Council car park or private car park? the advice is different

[Bailiff Advice]

I have never received either a charge certificate or an Order for Recovery. Since I spoke to them to arrange paying in three £25 installments, I have not had any communication from them whatsoever. Until this.

 

Having already paid off the fine in February, they have issued this warrant on March 19th ???? Why would they do that?

 

It is very unusual indeed to be able to secure a staged payment agreement with a local authority for parking tickets.

 

If you had not received either a Charge Certificate OR the Order for Recovery then you must call the council today to inquire what address they had on their records.

 

You need to also ask for the date that a warrant had been AUTHORISED. Can you post back once you have received answers to these questions.

[brassnecked]

If OP is in Scotland, Dossers can do diddly squat in Scotland and if they did turn up would be liable to have their collars felt possibly, don't think a warrant from an English court pulls any weight in Scotland. It certainly won't if Scotland gains independence.

[Bailiff Advice]

You live in Glasgow?

 

Then don't pay another penny. Enforcement only applies to England and Wales.

 

That is my understanding too but my concern here is that the debt 'appears' to have been registered at TEC and that should not have been possible as the TEC computer system would (as far as I am aware) reject a registration with a scottish post code so something is amiss.

 

In this case it seems that the registration has been accepted. There is nothing worse than giving a debtor a false sense of security so caution is the key word.

 

To be on the safe side, the OP should telephone TEC to clarify the position regarding the supposed debt registration of the PCN against an address in Scotland. Hopefully the OP will post back once those enquiries are made.

[brassnecked]

Seems best plan BA, but don't think Rossendales could use it in Scotland whatever TEC might think, unless there has been some background or underpublicised harmonisation allowing English bailiffs to roam free in Scotland. Alternatively TEC may have messsed up and not trapped an error.

[Bailiff Advice]

Seems best plan BA, but don't think Rossendales could use it in Scotland whatever TEC might think, unless there has been some background or underpublicised harmonisation allowing English bailiffs to roam free in Scotland. Alternatively TEC may have messsed up and not trapped an error.

 

It is not so much the matter of using Rossendales, it is that debt registrations against Scottish addresses at TEC should not have been possible and the registration should have been rejected and that is why the OP needs to call TEC to establish what has happened.

 

I have the TEC Code of Practice in my office so will check later.

[mcg68]

Was this a Council car park or private car park? the advice is different

This was on a main road, our parking ticket expired by about 10 mins, when we returned we had been given the fixed penalty notice by a traffic warden I presume?

 

Total amount outstanding (total debt) is £7 plus the £75 compliance stage fee, then if the £7 was the Court Registration Fee as advised by BA, then there was NO DEBT. So I really don't know why I received this. Seems pretty harsh to be honest.

 

What is the TEC? Also, if I was never notified of any further charges for paying late over and above the original £75, surely they can't hold me accountable for this £7 plus the £75 costs?

[mcg68]

Update. I called the Bailiffs and explained that the fine has beem paid in full. They advised me to call Torbey Council which I did. They told me I was late in paying the fine so the court action was taken which costs £7.

I argued that I have never been notified of the outstanding charge of £7 and apparently I was sent a charge certificate but I have not received this.

 

I now have to call the TEC for a Late Witness Statement to say that I never received the documents that they claim to have sent me. What a total total pain in the arse.

[brassnecked]

Update. I called the Bailiffs and explained that the fine has beem paid in full. They advised me to call Torbey Council which I did. They told me I was late in paying the fine so the court action was taken which costs £7.

I argued that I have never been notified of the outstanding charge of £7 and apparently I was sent a charge certificate but I have not received this.

 

I now have to call the TEC for a Late Witness Statement to say that I never received the documents that they claim to have sent me. What a total total pain in the arse.

Tell the TEC that you are in Scotland so possibly they cannot issue anything to your address when you do the Late Witness statement

[Bailiff Advice]

After the Charge Certificate is sent you would have 21 days to pay. If you fail to do so then the debt would be registered (as a debt) with the Northampton County Court Bulk Centre. All local authorities must pay a £7 'debt registration' fee when registering the debt.

 

I think that I know what has happened here (which is that you made part payments to reduce the amount of the PCN after debt registration) and the eventual amount at 'warrant' stage was £7. I am not 100% on this as your case is quite unique.

 

The OTT is the correct route legally but morally .it should be a simple matter for the local authority to cancel this small debt. This is perfectly within their remit.

 

You need to TEC and ask about the debt registration and warrant being registered against a Scottish address. Can you please post back with their response.

[Bailiff Advice]

 

I now have to call the TEC for a Late Witness Statement to say that I never received the documents that they claim to have sent me. What a total total pain in the arse.

 

Yes, it is a complete nonsense and more so given that the vast majority of Out of Time witness statements are sadly rejected. This is mainly due to wrongly completed forms and a misunderstanding about the reason for filing the OOT. Once rejected the debtor has a period of 14 days in which to seek a 'review' by way of an N244 (which can carry a court fee of £155)!!!

 

In your case you will be hampered in making the application given that on the form you are required to provide a REASON why you had not received the prior notices. You must call TEC first and then post back. If you need assistance with completing the form then post back as well.