Parking Tickets

[Guest Mumofthreeboys]

Would any kindly souls take pity on me and help me out with this one????? I need to write a letter to Crichtons re the following and if poss would like to throw in some legal jargon and quote some Acts........

 

This is cutting a long story short (if you want to see the full thread its called Bus Lane Fines), but anyway DH got 2 fines for driving through a bus lane. The fines have escalated and now been passed on to Crichtons who are a DCA. I've sent them a DPA letter to which they have replied, but their records are incorrect.

 

They state they made a visit in April, we didn't know anything about it until we received the DPA information - no card through the door, nothing.

 

Anyway they have added £230 for van + porter + bailiff and 2 x £50 for bailiff visits even though they 'attended' the same address.

 

If I ask them for proof they visited, they could fake a letter straighaway couldn't they????

 

They did visit in May (which is the next entry on the DPA info), so it looks to me as if they have entered it on the wrong date - should have been the entry above, which was April. But again, there was no proof they had come with a van and the note they put through the door was not in an envelope, which I have heard it should be.

 

Does anyone know where this leaves me? All comments gratefully received.

[Movingon]

Mumof3 - here we go:

 

The DCA do not have the right to charge YOU fees if they are collecting a debt on behalf of a client. They should charge their client for these services, not you. If your hubby is contesting the fines then he should do so with the issuing authority, not with the DCA: but he should write to the DCA informing them that the matter is in dispute and therefore no further correspondence from them will be entered into until the dispute is resolved.

 

Remember that a fine (under the Bill of Rights Act 1689) can only be issued by a Court of Law.

[Guest Mumofthreeboys]

Mumof3 - here we go:

 

The DCA do not have the right to charge YOU fees if they are collecting a debt on behalf of a client. They should charge their client for these services, not you. If your hubby is contesting the fines then he should do so with the issuing authority, not with the DCA: but he should write to the DCA informing them that the matter is in dispute and therefore no further correspondence from them will be entered into until the dispute is resolved.

 

Remember that a fine (under the Bill of Rights Act 1689) can only be issued by a Court of Law.

 

Thank you StoneLaughter, this is very helpful. I checked out your website this morning too, your garden looks lovely .

 

DH isn't contesting the fines, because he did go through the bus lanes and we have photographic evidence (and these fines are now really old btw) he had 'bury your head syndrome' I'm afraid!

 

Sorry if I'm being a bit slow, but do you think I should check that the fines were isued through a Court of Law then and ask for proof?

 

Incidentally, when the bailiff called in May and did leave notice he'd been, rather than the previous time, we called immediately and were told that it had gone on for too long now and the only acceptable route would be to send postdated cheques up to September!!

 

What do you think?

[Movingon]

He's bullying you lol. Ignore him.

 

Firstly, obviously you were banged to rights with the bus lane thing. I guess the next question is, "Is a bus lane violation an offence?". If it's an offence then you can rest assured it's been to court, and he should pay the fines only, and as quickly as possible. If however, like a parking charge, it's simply a "contravention", then it can be challenged via the Bill of Rights as the courts are not involved.

 

 

If he has to pay the fines, something like this letter should accompany his payment by cheque:

 

 

Dear Sir

 

I refer to your correspondence regarding fines in relation to my bus lane offences on xx/xx/xx and xx/xx/xx. I enclose a cheque for £xxx as payment for the fines only. I can confirm that I am not responsible for your fees in this matter, and you should invoice your client in respect of charging for your services.

 

Thank you

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

note my sig however; this is my opinion and you should undertake further research or wait for other opinions prior to acting on it...

[Guest Mumofthreeboys]

Stoney, loving the way you think??

 

But what about the cheques I've sent them, do you think I should cancel them bearing in mind that because he buried his head the fines escalated considerably before they even got to the DCA?

[Movingon]

Don't know - I bow to thegreater experience of the next hero

 

Thanks re: garden btw - a lot of backbreaking work and money

[Guest Mumofthreeboys]

Don't know anything about endowment selling per chance do you??????? ;-)

[Movingon]

lol - me computer engineer! Never had/will have an endowment, so have done precisely NO reading.

[bs0lth]

[quote=

They state they made a visit in April, we didn't know anything about it until we received the DPA information - no card through the door, nothing.

 

Anyway they have added £230 for van + porter + bailiff and 2 x £50 for bailiff visits even though they 'attended' the same address.

 

If I ask them for proof they visited, they could fake a letter straighaway couldn't they????:

 

Ive had similar problems with Jacobs cert baliffs... this was for a parking ticket that got out of control. However, I found a lot of help from Chrismc and his philips bailiffs thread. I used a similar letter to Chris's and sent it to jacobs. Basically if they are certified bailiffs they have certain rules and charges they have to adhere to... they were trying to charge me for two visits, I sent a letter asking about the charges, and asked them to provide me with copies of all the documentation they are supposed to leave after a visit. i also sent them a cheque for the original amount. they came back and said they couldnt provide me with copies of the documentation that was "left" during my visit... and that the matter would be closed on the clearance of my cheque...

 

it might be worth you looking at chris's thread, there is a lot of information there that could help you, or at least give you a starting point to stop the charges and stop them adding more.

 

hope this is of some help

 

Lynne

[bartonski]

hi guys makes for interesting reading being someone who is plagued by trafic wardens. my street in wandsworth is a bit of a miss match of residents parking bays and yellow lines. the line outside my front door is short, about the lenght of a car, has residents parking bays on each end with now t bar showing. further down the street there are parking bays painted over yellow lines with faded disabled signs above them. Anyway, my question...without the t bar, is the ticket enforcable?

thanks, rob

[chrismc]

hi guys makes for interesting reading being someone who is plagued by trafic wardens. my street in wandsworth is a bit of a miss match of residents parking bays and yellow lines. the line outside my front door is short, about the lenght of a car, has residents parking bays on each end with now t bar showing. further down the street there are parking bays painted over yellow lines with faded disabled signs above them. Anyway, my question...without the t bar, is the ticket enforcable?

thanks, rob

 

Sounds to me Bartonski that no tickets issued on your street would be enforceable due to the mish mash of lines and none lines etc, certainly without a complete line and T bar it would not be. I am fairly positive of this..but some of the Parking Ticket hunters will let you know for sure!!

[bartonski]

i need to pick your brains one more time...... at the moment i have three outstanding fines totaling 350. I rang the council to tell them that i just couldnt pay. They said i should write a letter saying exactly this...im not sure where this will lead. just got myself out of dept, payed off my loans so i really dont want to have this hanging over my head. Im thinking of asking them to drop the harges...not sure if it will work. If Anybody has an idea of how to word this letter to maximise its effect then id be happy to hear from you.

[bartonski]

hey thanks for the reply, sounds promissing. i was out with a ruler tonight measuring the lines. all over the place as new lines have been painted over old lines very badly. In reality its still a line but my be something according to the same strict rules they like to screw us by

[davemac28]

No, parking bays are adjudged to be placed on top of yellow lines, not as breaking them. It's the same with zebra crossings and hatch coamings and the like. You're actually meant to follow the line back to find the correct T bar. Where the line ends or joind double yellow lines or the like.

 

If theres been quite substantial relaying of the street and you find disruptions in the painting of the line, then you can consider that as a disfunctional line.

 

What you could do is ask the council for the TRO (Traffic regulation Order) for your street, because you may find that they haven't expressed restrictions on parking correctly.

[chrismc]

i need to pick your brains one more time...... at the moment i have three outstanding fines totaling 350. I rang the council to tell them that i just couldnt pay. They said i should write a letter saying exactly this...im not sure where this will lead. just got myself out of dept, payed off my loans so i really dont want to have this hanging over my head. Im thinking of asking them to drop the harges...not sure if it will work. If Anybody has an idea of how to word this letter to maximise its effect then id be happy to hear from you.

 

I think you need to post more information about the other tickets, and how they are worded etc as it may well be they are unenforceable if they are not worded correctly or dated etc etc. The wording is very important.

 

Also read all this thread there is tons of info.

[davemac28]

What's the fines for? Are they parking tickets, were they issued correctly, do they have the correct wording on them?

 

1st thing to check is does it have 'date of issue' on the ticket? Not just the date on the rip off slip that you send back, but on the top part of the ticket it must also say 'date of issue'.

 

Check this thread:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general-consumer-issues/5232-your-parking-ticket-may.html

 

Deemacperth's quite good on that, he's fighting Westmister I think. and Seylectric was fighting one up near blackpool or something.

[bartonski]

will do thanks for the info. i did check the wording and all seems in order.

[bartonski]

unfortunatley its all there. two are parking tickets. both for my motorbike. one for westminster for parking in a residents bay and the other in wandsworth for parking on the yellow line outside my house. the third is for a no left turn....

[bartonski]

just been for a walk around the street. no t bars anywhere and in some areas it fades out for a few metres, broken up or tarmacked over. pretty bad state.

[chrismc]

just been for a walk around the street. no t bars anywhere and in some areas it fades out for a few metres, broken up or tarmacked over. pretty bad state.

 

I doubt they are enforceable then....but you need to find the right way to make a complaint and refute the charges, it will be listed here somewhere of how to go about it.

[bartonski]

will do. quite alot to read through. will make a start sunday. thanks

[chrismc]

will do. quite alot to read through. will make a start sunday. thanks

 

Start Sunday and by Friday you may just have read it all

[dw190]

will do thanks for the info. i did check the wording and all seems in order.

 

From what you have previously said you must also have received "Notice to Owner" or even "Charge Certificates". Many councils up and down the country have cocked up with these documents with their automated counting of dates.

 

All documentation other than the initial PCN must refer to the number of days you have from the Date of Service of the notice.

 

Also check on the Notice to Owner the part "If by ??/??/???? you have failed to pay or make representations" The inserted date must allow for them posting the doc to you. If it is exactly 28 days after the Date of Issue of the Notice it is flawed.

 

Take a look at FightBack Forums -> Parking Tickets

[bartonski]

ive checked the dates and they are correct. phoned them up regarding the biggest fine. i should have paid 150 by 11/05/06. ontop of that two others totaling 350. This is alot of money for me which makes me feel like just ignoring them. im moving out of my rented accomodation soon, i dont have a uk driving licence and i dont intend to inform the DVLA of my new address untill i have sold my bike and bought a new one. I know its not the best thing to do but i think they have mte by the short and curlies. what do you think my chances are of them giving up looking for me after a while?

[dw190]

ive checked the dates and they are correct. phoned them up regarding the biggest fine. i should have paid 150 by 11/05/06. ontop of that two others totaling 350. This is alot of money for me which makes me feel like just ignoring them. im moving out of my rented accomodation soon, i dont have a uk driving licence and i dont intend to inform the DVLA of my new address untill i have sold my bike and bought a new one. I know its not the best thing to do but i think they have mte by the short and curlies. what do you think my chances are of them giving up looking for me after a while?

 

By just ignoring them you will most likely end up with CCJ registered.

 

Can you scan and post the notices removing all personal identifying text.