Highview/DCBL Letter of Claim now claimform - already appealled twice - Bradfield Road Sheffield

[s25]

Hi

To cut a long story short i parked in this car park on a saturday evening - i was the only car in the car park - while i went to local italian restaurant across the road.  i was there 2 hours and 2 mins.  Signage quotes 90 mins free parking.

 

got lovely letter from Highview telling me i'd overstayed and that "Terms and Conditions are clearly and prominently displayed and payment of £100 is due which can be reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days"

 

i responded to them, asked for clarification, explained where i was (their website does allow overstay if you are a customer of a local business), supplied copies of the bill and bank statement for the time to prove i was in the restaurant, all to no avail.  they advised i was unsuccessful.  Was told couldn't appeal to their governing body as 28 days had elapsed since the original letter.

 

so now i have a letter from their legal arm asking for £170 or they will take me to court.  Again, i raised the issues i had, and again was told to go away, was also sent lots of pictures of the signage from the car park - thing is the signage claims £85 if you overstay (reduced to £50 if paid in 14 days),  i also have a picture of the signs i took in the days after.

 

so my question is,  as their original "demand" contained invalid information regarding cost of "fine" is it valid ?  and what can i do about it ?

 

any advise would be gratefully received

 

 

[honeybee13]

Hello, welcome to CAG.

 

We don't advise doing anything at this stage, unless you've had a letter headed Letter Before Claim/Action.

 

Please could you let us have the information requested in the forum sticky thread and we'll take it from there.

 

 

Best, HB

[s25]

i'll get those details filled in later today and back to you.

 

the last letter i have quotes "This is a formal letter of Claim in accordance with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims"

[honeybee13]

Right. So now you do need to do something. With a LoC, we suggest sending a 'snotty letter' - there are examples in many, many private parking threads.

 

But first, perhaps we could see the information from the link in post #2. Once we can see the details, we'll be able to tell you what might be wrong with their documentation.

 

HB

[FTMDave]

HB is right, you now have formal notice of legal action starting, so you need to get your skates on.

 

1.  Please fill in the sticky.

 

2.  Upload a copy of the PCN.

 

3.  I see you have photos of the signs.  Well done.  Please upload them too.

 

4.  "Their website does allow overstay if you are a customer of a local business".  Can you link to this please?

 

5.  When you wrote to Highview, did you out yourself as the driver?

 

This is all info we need ASAP.  After it will be snotty letter time.

 

Plus learn for the future.  It's perfectly natural if this hasn't happened to you before that you think you can reason with the charlatans.  But the reality is that private parking companies never, ever, ever accept appeals - ever.  All appealing does is give them info they can lie about and use against you, plus you throw away legal protections.

Edited October 11, 2022 by FTMDave
Typo

[s25]

1 Date of the infringement 18/9/2021

 

2 Date on the NTK [this must have been received within 14 days from the 'offence' date] 18/10/2021 (1 month after)
 

[scan up BOTH SIDES as ONE PDF- follow the upload guide]

please do not put JPG Picture files into your post

 

done above 

 

3 Date received 23/10/2021
 

4 Does the NTK mention schedule 4 of The Protections of Freedoms Act 2012? [Y/N?] N
 

5 Is there any photographic evidence of the event? ANPR on PCN
 

6 Have you appealed? [Y/N?] post up your appeal] Y - appeal is via an online web form on their website

 

I used this car park to attend a local restaurant (Setti Coli) that we often frequent, I am a regular customer there, and spend a considerable amount of money in there - something i will have to reconsider following your actions.

 

on the evening in question the restaurant was extrememly busy which accounted for the extended stay in the restaurant The car park was empty when i arrived and when i left,  i was not preventing anybody else from using the car park.

 

your letter refers to "our client", yet fails to identify who the client is. i respectfull request that you provide me with the details of the client so i can take the matter up with them directly.

 

your letter claims i have 14 days to make payment, and lists the date as 14th November, as the letter was received on the 23rd October i fail to see how this has provided me with 14 days.

 

Have you had a response? [Y/N?] post it up Y - refused on all points

 

Thank you for your correspondence relating to your Parking Charge.

The representations stated in your correspondence have been noted and considered. Please forward to us the full name and address of the driver at the time this charge was incurred so that we can update our records accordingly.

 

In light of your claims, we are also prepared to reconsider the status of this Charge should we receive evidence of your custom at the site on the date in question. However, until such time as this evidence is received this Charge will continue to remain outstanding.

 

I supplied details regarding being a customer - copy of bill and bank statement

 

their response was: 

Thank you for your correspondence relating to your Parking Charge.

Kindly refer to our previous correspondence on this matter, which explains why your appeal has been carefully considered and rejected on this occasion.

 

Our previous correspondence represents our final stance on this matter and, as such, we would request that you refer to it as it details the options now at your disposal.

 

We are placing this Charge on hold for 14 days from the date of this letter to allow time for the documentation requested to be received.

 

7 Who is the parking company? Highview Parking

 

8. Where exactly [carpark name and town] Bradfield Road, S6 2BW
 

For either option, does it say which appeals body they operate under.

BPA
 

 

oops ! i've corrected that now

 

Highview PCN issued 1 month after ANPR Capture.pdf

[FTMDave]

First the bad bit.  The fleecers didn't know who the driver was.  They had the details of the keeper, but to sue the keeper they have to use Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act which states they have to get their PCN to the keeper within 14 days which they failed to do.  So they had no-one to sue.  But then you told them who the driver was.

 

Now the many good bits.  Their sign states £85 charge but the PCN is £100!  Well done in getting the photo of the sign.  Are the photos of the signs they sent you legit and do they also mention £85?  If so they have royally screwed up!

 

In light of your claims, we are also prepared to reconsider the status of this Charge should we receive evidence of your custom at the site on the date in question. However, until such time as this evidence is received this Charge will continue to remain outstanding.

 

Did they really write this to you?  If so, epic fail, on their own admission they should have cancelled the charge.

 

DCBL are a third party.  It doesn't really matter what is written on their site.

 

 

[s25]

Yes the pics they sent show the £85 fee.

 

what do i do now ?

[FTMDave]

Was the Letter of Claim from DCBL?

[s25]

yes DCBLegal

[FTMDave]

Then you need to write a snotty letter to DCBL to show you'd be big trouble if their clients took you to court so it'd be better to leave you in peace and go after some mug who would just cough up.

 

A snotty letter has to do that but not let on how you would defend any court claim.  I would include something like "if you'd actually done any due diligence rather than being bone idle as usual you'd have seen your thicko clients actually promised they would cancel the charge" as this information is already there in correspondence.  Don't let on about the signage.  No need to be polite - these people are charlatans and you need to show you've sussed they are charlatans.

 

If you do a search "snotty letter" loads of examples will pop up.  Do a draft of yours and we can tweak it if needs be.

[s25]

This was the paragraph on their website

 

Our Clients primarily manage parking on private land on behalf of landowners. 

 

Pursuant to an agreement between the respective parties, our Client (“the creditor”) will be responsible for monitoring the land in question and making sure that motorists are adhering to the terms and conditions of parking on the land.  Such terms and conditions are set out in signs that are displayed on the land and form the basis of a contract with the driver of the vehicle who enters that land.

 

Any motorist found not to have complied with the terms and conditions set out in the signs will be in breach of the contract and is likely to be issued with a PCN.  Some examples of how you may have breached the terms and conditions are as follows: –

1. Parking for longer than the maximum period permitted;
2. Not displaying a valid permit or Pay & Display ticket;
3. Parking in a restricted area where parking is not permitted;
4. Parking on land which is to be used for customers of local businesses only (and you were not a customer at the time);
5. Not displaying a valid disabled badge when parked in a disabled bay;
6. Not parking within a designated bay / parking space.

The above list is not exhaustive and may not include the particular contravention that your PCN was issued for.

[FTMDave]

Yes, I know, but is it really relevant?  Was the car park only for the Italian restaurant customers?

[s25]

no, but the post says businessess and at that time of night it's the only local business that's actually open ?

[s25]

how does this sound ?

Dear DCBL

I write in response to your so-called Letter Before Claim, which I have received in relation to PCN Number: ?????, issued by yourselves for an alleged parking breach.

 

I am writing to notify you that I have no intention of paying these ridiculous and made-up sums of money, for allegedly breaking some imaginary contract with yourselves.

 

Should you proceed to court I will actively defend my case, so it may be better for all parties if you put a stop to the whole charade.

 

Had you bothered to carry out any due diligence rather than being bone idle as usual you'd have seen your clients promised they would cancel the charge pending proof of custom which I supplied.

 

You also seem to have added an admin fee, although as you have declined to provide a fee breakdown I must assume this admin fee is some sort of unicorn food tax. I suggest that you look at DDJ Harvey’s judgement at Lewes County Court on 05/02/2020 (Claim number F0HM9E9Z). He was not very happy with these made-up amounts, was he?

 

You can either drop this foolishness now or get a good hiding in court. The choice is yours. After all should you proceed with this ridiculous claim I will be seeking an unreasonable costs order under CPR.27.14, as well as damages for a breach of GDPR as you accessed my information from the DVLA without any reasonable cause.

[AndyOrch]

Quote

 I will actively defend my case

 

Suggest change to vigorously 

[FTMDave]

Work calls now.  Will look in late this evening.

[FTMDave]

Very good level of snottiness.  Well done.

 

Just change one paragraph

 

You also seem to have added an admin fee, although as you have declined to provide a fee breakdown I must assume this admin fee is some sort of unicorn food tax. I suggest that you look at DDJ Harvey’s judgement at Lewes County Court on 05/02/2020 (Claim number F0HM9E9Z). He was not very happy with these made-up amounts, was he?

 

to

 

You also seem to have added an admin fee, although as you have declined to provide a fee breakdown I must assume this admin fee is some sort of unicorn food tax.  Judges aren't very happy about these made-up amounts, are they?

 

You weren't to know this, but sadly the judgement you quoted which at the time we were taunting the fleecers with was later appealed and the conmerchants won.

 

Write at the bottom COPIED TO HIGHVIEW PARKING LTD and tomorrow invest in two 2nd class stamps and get two free Certificates of Posting from the post office.

 

The reason we say to copy to the PPC is because dodgy solicitors like DCBL would be quite happy for their clients to start a hopeless court case - after all it's still quids in for them.  Let Highview too know that doing court would just lead to yet another court humiliation and a big hole in their wallet.

 

On 11/10/2022 at 13:11, s25 said:

no, but the post says businessess and at that time of night it's the only local business that's actually open ?

That's not what the sentence means.  It means for example that you park in a pub car park, which is for customers only, and then don't actually use the pub but wander off elsewhere.

 

But in any case what a firm of solicitors like DCBL say is neither here nor there to your case.

 

Your are in legal dispute with Highview Parking.

[s25]

Thanks for your input, i've made the changes and sent them off.

 

i'll let you know if / when i hear back

[s25]

Hi

 

i sent letter on 12th October as discussed, I have heard nothing by way of a response.

 

however today I have a county court letter?

 

what do I do now? 

[honeybee13]

Hi.

 

If this is a form from Northampton CCBC, you need to give us the information asked for in this sticky please.

 

 

HB

[dx100uk]

or is it just a threat-o-gram

 

scan it up to pdf read upload.

 

dx

[s25]

d00c5f4b.pdfI've attached the PDF document as requested

 

please advise

 

i would also like to draw your attention to Particulars of Claim D which "claims" i agreed to pay within 28 days.

 

at no point in any correspondence have i ever indicated i would pay this

 

what do i do know ?

 

claimform.pdf

[dx100uk]

yes its a claimform

easily dealt with if you follow our instruction.

 

for now 

please complete this:

 

dx

 

 

[s25]

 

Which Court have you received the claim from ?

 

County Court Business Centre - Northampton

 

if possible please scan redact and upload a full page copy of page 1 of the claim form. (not the response page or AOS)

 

Name of the Claimant : Highview Parking Limited

 

Claimants Solicitors: DCB Legal

 

Date of issue – 16 /11 / 2022

 

Date for AOS - 4/12/2022

 

Date to submit Defence - 16/12/2022

 

What is the claim for

1. The Defendant (D) is indebted to the Claimant(C) for a Parking Charge(s) issued to vehicle ********* at Bradfield Road Car Park S6 2bw.

2. The PCN details are 18/9/2021 **********

3. The PCN(s) was issued on private lane owned of managed by C. The vehicle was parked in breach of the Terms on Cs signs (The contract) this incurring the PCN(s).

4. D is liable as the driver of the vehicle and agreed to pay within 28 days but did not. Despite requests the PCN(s) is claimform.pdfg. The Contact entitles C to damages

AND THE CLAIMANT CLAIMS

1. £170 being the total of the PCN(s) and damages

2. Interest at a rate of 8% per annum pursuant to s.69 of the country courts act 1984 from the date hereof at a daily rate of £0.02 until judgement or sooner payment

3. Costs and court fees

 

 

 

What is the value of the claim?

 

 

Amount Claimed  185.80

court fees  35.00

legal rep fees  50.00

Total Amount  270.80

 

^^^^^^^copy and paste the above to your topic^^^^^^^

claimform.pdf