LBC Gladstones Euro Parking Services

ilikebiscuits · 21 July 2016 at 8:48AM

Hi All,

I could use some help please. I received the standard Letter Before Claim from Gladstones. I found the fightback thread by zzzLazyDaizy and I sent the initial reply letter from post #3 which states their letter does not comply with the Practice Direction and that they should send me one that does etc.

Two weeks later I get a short reply from Gladstones stating that they believe their LBC does comply with the Practice Direction and that they will not be issuing me with a another Letter Before Claim. Then they say that they will issue a claim at close of business on 'date' if I do not pay them £X (an important note here is that the sum they now demand is half of what their LBC alleged I owed).

Sorry for the vagueness of my post but I know that they read these forums. What would you recommend I do now? Will they follow through with their unreasonable threat? Their deadline is only a few days away, and I only got the letter today, which is totally unreasonable. They threaten me with a claim unless I pay a sum which is now half the original amount stated on the LBC, but they do not say that this will cancel the whole alleged debt, so what's to stop them threatening me again for the other half if I did pay? It sounds to me like they are trying to frighten me into paying a reduced amount, and this smacks of desperation too. What do you think?

Herzlos · 21 July 2016 at 9:03AM

Wait for them to file a claim, defend it, beat them, and then use the poor LBC and their response to claim they are being unreasonable and claim your costs back.

Also, forward their LBC and response to the SRA (Solicitors Regulatory Authority) with a summary of what's wrong with it, and ask them to investigate.

Coupon-mad · 21 July 2016 at 10:06AM

Yes you might well get a claim and it is defendable and winnable (worst case scenario if you actually lost in the end, you'd have to pay the PCN sum plus maybe £50 court fees, not the admin costs/legal fees G's slapped on, in the previous letter).

We keep seeing Gladstones back no-hopers with little evidence. Here's a MSE thread with a suggested response to a LBCCC:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5449108

And the Prankster has written several Blogs this year about Gladstones:

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/hopeless-solicitors-gladstones-bungle.html

Parking Prankster: ''It appears from the information provided to him that Gladstone Solicitors are hopelessly incompetent bunglers...''

ilikebiscuits · 21 July 2016 at 11:59AM

Hi Coupon-mad, thanks for your reply.

I looked at the suggested response in the thread you gave. I will use this and the advice on zzzLazyDaizy's thread to send a response letter via first class post with free proof of posting. However, since their ridiculous deadline is only a few days away I doubt they will receive and process my letter before the deadline ends. What happens if this is the case?

Coupon-mad · 21 July 2016 at 12:32PM

Your proof of posting today means the letter is deemed delivered by Monday at the latest. Keep your certificate of posting stapled to a copy of the letter you send, as proof.

Basically G's will have your letter on their desk on Monday but they rarely respond to LBC replies anyway. So, expect court papers, don't be daunted, this does not affect your credit rating as long as you defend and meet any court deadlines/directions.

We will help you defend this and give you a fighting chance - do not respond to any private message offering to 'help' from a newbie poster with less than 1000 posts to their name. If you get such a pm, tell us who it's from and quote it here in the open forum to expose them. Some posters here have a nasty agenda that the regulars do not - and the nastier ones know who they are and should crawl back under their stone.

Even if you lose there is no CCJ, treat it like a decent life experience/learning curve! People who win are thrilled and pleased they fought it and people who lose just pay it after judgment and are normally still glad to have tried. And Gladstones really do muck lots up, see several other relevant Prankster Blogs by Googling 'Gladstones Parking Prankster'.

ilikebiscuits · 22 July 2016 at 5:56PM

Hi Coupon-mad, thanks very much for your fast replies and support, I really appreciate it. The letter is sent with proof of postage obtained. I will see this to the end, I won't be bullied or intimidated by the likes of these people. I'll keep you posted with any developments. Thanks again.

The_Slithy_Tove · 22 July 2016 at 7:32PM

You need to understand how these chancers at Gladstones operate.

A solicitor is supposed to tell a client if they have a hopeless case, so they don't waste time and effort on it (you know, the "ethical" way, something Gladstones are severely lacking). Instead, they say to a PPC, "look, you've won the IPC appeal (which, conveniently, have the same directors as us, so of course we've completely rigged it in our favour - who wouldn't), so you have a really good case going to court. Let us [STRIKE]fleece[/STRIKE] represent you." Which they will do, knowing it's likely they'll lose, but who cares, they will bill the PPC their fees anyway.

ilikebiscuits · 7 October 2016 at 12:43PM

Hi all, many thanks for the replies so far. I'm back because Gladstones has issued a claim and I got court papers in the post. I sent back the acknowledgement in time and now I have till next Friday (14th October) to send in my defense. I'd appreciate some help forming the defense please...

System · 7 October 2016 at 1:00PM

What do the particulars say? Are they vague or specific? Do they say particulars have been sent or will be sent?

Coupon-mad · 7 October 2016 at 1:05PM

ilikebiscuits wrote: »

Hi all, many thanks for the replies so far. I'm back because Gladstones has issued a claim and I got court papers in the post. I sent back the acknowledgement in time and now I have till next Friday (14th October) to send in my defense. I'd appreciate some help forming the defense please...

Have a look at other defences on here. Build a draft that is based on those, and show us.

I wrote one last night, for example. And there are more on other threads - e.g. the username Xanthanan's case, also username: aiantyla.

Ralph-y · 7 October 2016 at 1:09PM

have you read through Parkies blog?

if not it will show a small sample of what you are up against

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/

good luck

Ralph:cool:

LBC Gladstones Euro Parking Services

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