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5 PCN TICKETS issued for parking in my own allocated space (residential) 5 TICKETS!

Hello can anyone help. PCM (UK) is at it again giving me a ticket on my allocated residential space. I bought property/flat 6months ago, with allocated parking in lease, and rights to enjoy the property, etc. It does not mention parking permit!. Yes, they have signage that says do not park unless with permit, bla bla. but as far as I was concerned, this does not apply to me, besides no one told me anything. Estate mgt coy did not produce me with permit pack, etc., neither did landowner, even though I paid grd rent and service charge religiously. Matter of fact, no one told me and provided me a permit or ability to opt-in to the scheme. Then, I get 5!!! tickets over a 2 week period. I left note on my car saying do NOT issue tickets in my allocated space, bla bla. Nothing. I appealed the tickets. Of course, PCM (UK) rejected appeal. I chased with estate mgmt coy, who said - leave it with me (on the phone), 1 week later, they came back saying PCM said no. I now have to either: draft letter/email to PCM (again) saying I will NOT pay and give all the reasons, OR draft a letter to freeholder/landowner, or draft letter to both. I have not contacted anyone else, but need to know best way to proceed (don’t particularly want to rope freeholder/estate mgmt. coy in this mess, as don’t want to start on a bad foot), but I need someone to advise best option, and what template I can use. I have read the NEWBIES post, and there is a lot, but this is more a question of best way to proceed, rather than if it will succeed and not go all the way to court! Due to time constraints, I will like to act sooner rather than later! Can anyone help please? Thanks. By the way, I have a draft letter I can share if you wish below…


With respect to the 5 PCN notices given to me on 5 consecutive days, I am the keeper of the cars in question and I am writing to disagree with the decisions made to reject my appeal. This refers to appeals raised directly and via Estates mgt coy. I am confirming that no contract has been formed and so there is no breach of contract so these tickets above won't be paid. I am thereby politely but firmly writing back to request that you rescind the tickets.

Primacy of contract and Obligations to tell me – not informed
Firstly, I do not believe I have an obligation to display any sort of permit, and certainly don’t have to pay for any sort of parking ‘fine’. The deeds/lease override any contract my management company may have with a parking company (primacy of contract), and till date, as a recent property owner with an allocated parking space, there is categorically nowhere in my lease or terms of contract when I purchased the property to infer that I have opted in to a parking scheme agreement. As a matter of fact, since moving into the property, I've made numerous related calls to make ground rent payments and service charge payments, but have not been made aware of a parking scheme agreement by the landowner or estate management company or indeed PCM (UK), nor have I been expressly communicated to about a permit requirement, issuance, nor have I been provided a permit, despite paying ground rent and service charges for almost a year.

Contract formation with me - null
The permit system has not been agreed by myself, and does not apply since this is a private parking space allocated to me in my lease when I purchased my property. In this regard, I did purchase rights to use the parking space on the development and have paid ground rent and service charges subsequently since purchase of the property. This information was contained in the lease upon purchase of the property, and till date, I have not been informed of Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd's contract with the freeholder, or of your responsibility (or not) to provide an option to opt-in (or opt-out) for this so-called scheme. To date, I have not received a permit or notice from either yourself or the freeholder, neither have I received any notifications from yourself or the freeholder of any instructions you have received with regards to the parking space.

Terms of contract – not provided to me
As a result, I am not party to any agreement and did not realize that I am bound by the ‘terms’ which I have not received and agreed to. Also, the PCN notices refer to a statement that "… I should be aware of those 'terms' because I received a permit". However, this is incorrect. Although I have paid my monthly ground rent and service charge since I purchased the property, I have received no ‘permit’ so I am not in receipt of any terms and conditions, or any agreement between yourselves (PCM) and freeholder or Estate Management Company. Once again, no contract is formed with myself.

Signage -
Also, to this effect, the notices and signage on the site are not clear and sufficient for the purposes, as it does not address allocated spaces, nor does it infer or show a direct connection between yourselves and the freeholder, neither do they provide notification of a contract, or instructions of and remediation on how to resolve (i.e. how to be a party/non-party to your agreement with the freeholder). As a result, the signage does not create a contract as the notice is forbidding and attempts to displace the terms in my lease.

Lack of Interest
I will like to also remind you that PCM (UK) Ltd have no legitimate interest in enforcing charges against residents, as I do not believe this has ever been the purpose of the scheme. Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd's lack of title or assigned interest in this land means there is no legal standing to allege trespass or loss, if this is the basis of your charge. Nor does Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd have the legal status at that site, which would give any right to offer parking spaces on a contractual basis, as they are not the landowner and I have seen no evidence of a compliant contract with the landowner. I am convinced that I can request strict proof that Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd have a relevant, contemporaneous contract with the landowner that entitles them to pursue these charges in the courts in your own name as creditor. I can refer to the BPA Code of Practice (CoP) which contains the following:
"Written authorisation of the landowner: If you do not own the land on which you are carrying out parking management, you must have the written authorisation of the landowner (or their appointed agent) before you can start operating on the land in question. The authorisation must give you the authority to carry out all aspects of the management and enforcement of the site that you are responsible for. In particular, it must say that the landowner requires you to keep to the Code of Practice, and that you have the authority to pursue outstanding parking charges, through the courts if necessary."
I can therefore request Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd to produce a full unredacted copy of the agreement with the landowner to confirm (or otherwise) that you have the necessary legal standing to offer parking and pursue charges in your own name. A Witness Statement will not be sufficient. I will like to remind you that if this was the case, then under civil law, only the landowner/occupier could bring a claim for trespass on a property, and subsequently, a duty will exist somewhere to inform leaseholders who are allocated a space of this authorization and legal position within the purchase of the property + allocated parking.

Estimated Loss
Finally, the charge is not a genuine pre-estimate of loss, as I do not believe that the £100 (or £60 discounted amount) fine for each ticket demonstrates an estimate of likely losses. As the person allocated a parking space, I have suffered no loss by parking in my own space, neither has the landowner suffered as a result of me parking in my own allocated space. I understand that the parking charge must be an estimate of likely losses flowing from the alleged breach in order to be potentially enforceable. It would be beneficial to understand that the only loss has been to myself to write this letter, stress about this issue continuously as I received tickets for the number of days, and now chasing all parties to a resolution.

Rights
I will like to also refer to the fact that the ticketing operative who has constantly disregarded initial conversations and written notices I have left on the car asking not to issue tickets in my parking allocated space is causing me distress, and the operative is trespassing on my allocated parking space by applying a ticket repeatedly despite me saying not to. Therefore, the operative acting on behalf of PCM (UK) Ltd is contravening my right to peaceful enjoyment of my property as per my lease.


On the basis of the points raised above and others raised in conversations, I will like to request that you rescind the notices/tickets/parking charges. This is a polite request of course, as I have not carried out any action with respect to an alternative dispute resolution such as the IAS.

Please, if you can confirm your decision in writing within the next 14 days from date of this letter, then no further action will be required from you, or taken by myself. If you do not agree with any of my points above or I do not hear from you, then unfortunately, I will have to..?. However, if you do appreciate my position on this matter, and agree to rescind, I will make arrangements to contact PCM (UK) to determine the terms, conditions and details of this parking scheme, and decide if I wish to opt-in and receive a permit or not.
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Comments

  • Fruitcake
    Fruitcake Posts: 58,155
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    edited 17 May 2017 at 9:03AM
    The text could do with breaking up a bit by hitting "enter" a few more times to make it easier to read.

    The majority of the content is good and covers most of the points you need. Have a look at the Parking-Prankster's blogspot, specifically the Jopson case where the judge found in favour of the resident because a third party cannot add on additional Ts and Cs.

    http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/residential-parking.html

    Add references to these court cases in your letter above.

    Also search for own space and residential parking using the search this forum button to find lots of similar cases to yours.

    As far as the IAS is concerned, this is a kangaroo court and has an incestuous relationship with the IPC and their solicitors. It's the same people so you won't get a fair hearing. Point out that you have researched the IAS and agree with the concensus that it is a sham, and not independent at all.

    Hopefully the experts will be along soon to help out.
    I married my cousin. I had to...
    I don't have a sister. :D
    All my screwdrivers are cordless.
    "You're Safety Is My Primary Concern Dear" - Laks
  • anitasingh
    anitasingh Posts: 11 Forumite
    Thanks, sorry about the post, i'm a newbie. Update this morning... I forwarded the letter to the mgt coy saying this is my intended appeal, so I urge them to use their authority (they appointed PCM) to get them to rescind. I said I will escalate further if nothing.

    so, this morning, I got a response from mgt coy now, who I chased further after I said I will escalate to the directors. They have now said that PCM (UK) wrote "... to help both you and the resident I am willing to cancel the parking charges issued in May only on the following provisions: that I pay the 3 tickets in April, and pay £15 for a permit". They have given me 1week to comply. I categorically do NOT intend to pay anything! especially on my demised space as per my lease (read full response I sent to estate mgt coy above). What is the best way to respond (or proceed)? Please anyone?
  • Fruitcake
    Fruitcake Posts: 58,155
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    edited 17 May 2017 at 10:08AM
    They are panicking because they realise you aren't going to roll over and give in, so please, please, pretty please give us some money as otherwise we might cry, boo hoo.

    Of course you shouldn't pay.

    Respond robustly with the following points.

    There is nothing in your lease/contract concerning parking permits or payments to a third party. Point them in the direction of the Jopson case and state that as they are responsible for employing the unregulated parking scammers, they are jointly and severally liable for any loss incurred by you.

    You require them to cancel the five PCNs within 1 week, and a guarantee that the parking scammers will not trespass on your demised parking space and will not issue any more tickets to any vehicle lawfully parked there in accordance with your lease.
    You hereby withdraw any implied right of access to your demised space, and insist that you are granted the quiet enjoyment of your property as defined by your lease.

    You are not required to join a permit scheme and withdraw any implied requirement to do so, in accordance with your lease.

    If these tickets are not cancelled, please provide the contact details for your legal representative, and any dates when they will not be available to attend court.

    Also point out that allowing the scammers to obtain your keeper details when they have no right is a breach of the Data Protection Act. Costs for this are not limited to reasonable expenses of £95 as for the small claims court, but the penalty for such breach is normally awarded in the order of £500 to £750 for EACH and every breach of the DPA.
    Since they employed the scammers, again they are jointly and severally liable for each breach and the management co will be included in a counterclaim for DPA breaches should this get to court.


    Basically, no more nice person. Stick the knife in to the scammers and the management co.

    You should also contact other residents and tell them about this website. Letters through the door and windscreen flyers will get the word out. Form your own support group if you are up for it. Get the word out and fight the scammers together.
    I married my cousin. I had to...
    I don't have a sister. :D
    All my screwdrivers are cordless.
    "You're Safety Is My Primary Concern Dear" - Laks
  • anitasingh
    anitasingh Posts: 11 Forumite
    Ok, I just spoke to director at estate mgr. he said, how long have i been at proerty, I said 6,7 mnths or so. He said unfortunately there is nothing they can do. That if it was 2, 3 mths in, then maybe. he said, there are signs (PCM signs all over), and I said everything in the email above, and he said, yes, but that there are covenants within my lease that make them do anything reasonable to make sure i am enjoying my space including permits, etc. (there is nothing that says permit, no variation to lease etc.) - i think he is trying to pull the wool over my eyes),. i said, no one told me anything, and that signs saying parking is permitted for residents with a valid permit does not supercede my lease. funny enough, we just appointed them (the estate mgt coy) about 4 mths ago, so this need not be difficult - i should have been informed (in a buyers pack, or at least, issued a permit, especially as i am paying service charges, etc. That you put posters up is not binding on my demised space. he said it is. that he doesnt even know why and how PCM agreed to cancel 2 tickets. I said, this is not going anywhere, i need regional director's number to establish their final position, and reminded him that i have not incurred any charges but if this keeps going and i start proceedings, then they will be jointly liable, as per above, etc. especially on trespass on my property. I need to draft a response... that he will send to regional director... anyone?
  • Half_way
    Half_way Posts: 7,029
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    try these courtesy of lynzer on pepipoo

    quick guide:
    http://www.thebridesmother.co.uk/Media/residential-parking.pdf


    template ideas

    http://www.thebridesmother.co.uk/Media/Templates.pdf


    post back here with your thoughts, and drafts BEFORE sending anything off
    From the Plain Language Commission:

    "The BPA has surely become one of the most socially dangerous organisations in the UK"
  • anitasingh
    anitasingh Posts: 11 Forumite
    Sample draft:

    Thank you very much,

    Unfortunately this will not suffice and I will NOT be paying any of the tickets as I intend to stand on my original case. I have just spoken to XXX, and has agreed with PCM (UK) on their position. He also mentioned that if I had 'only' moved in to the property about 3months ago or so, then this would have been a case, but as I have been there for 9months, then 'I have no excuse'.

    I don't think I need to state the obvious again; There is nothing specifically in my lease concerning parking permits or payments to a third party other than service charges and ground rents. As the estate mgt co, you have contracted a company to operate on land that is demised to me without my notification and agreement. Obviously joint liability would apply to estate mgt coy and PCM (UK) if it came to it, but I do not believe it should get to that. I will like to point you to the Jopson case, where you are responsible for employing the unregulated parking scammers, and have granted authority to trespass on land that you have not infromed me about and gained my permission, and as such you are jointly and severally liable for any loss incurred by myself. PCM (UK) act on your authority, so I believe this can be sorted out easily. I will require the regional directors number to escalate this further and establish your final position on this before I decide how to proceed.

    To clarify, there are 5 tickets issued; 3 in April and 2 issued in May, and unfortunately, unless they cancel/rescind all 5 tickets, I do not see any forthcoming resolution. Also, did you get a chance to send me the agreement between yourselves and PCM (UK) Ltd? Also, estate coy mgr mentioned he will send me your company charter. I will require this. I will also now require that you instruct PCM (UK) not to trespass on my demised parking space (??? in court, wouldn't this imply that I unknowingly allowed/permitted trespass in the past so tickets are valid) and confirm that PCM (UK) will not issue any more tickets to any vehicle lawfully parked in my allocated space in accordance with my lease. I hereby withdraw any implied right of access to my demised space, and insist that I am granted the quiet enjoyment of my property as defined by my lease.
  • Fruitcake
    Fruitcake Posts: 58,155
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    edited 17 May 2017 at 1:05PM
    anitasingh wrote: »
    Sample draft:

    Thank you very much,

    Further to our recent telephone conversation ...[STRIKE]Unfortunately[/STRIKE] this will not suffice and I will NOT be paying any of the tickets as I intend to stand on my original case. I have just spoken to XXX, and has agreed with PCM (UK) on their position. He also mentioned that if I had 'only' moved in to the property about 3months ago or so, then this would have been a case, but as I have been there for 9months, then 'I have no excuse'. This implies that the management co have the ability to cancel PCNs that are unfairly issued, as this one obviously is.


    I don't think I need to state the obvious again; There is nothing [STRIKE]specifically [/STRIKE]in my lease concerning parking permits or payments to a third party other than service charges and ground rents. As the estate mgt co, you have contracted a company to operate on land that is demised to me without my notification and agreement. Obviously joint liability would apply to estate mgt coy and PCM (UK) if it came to it, but I do not believe it should get to that. I will like to point you to the Jopson case, (quote either the case number and a link, or the link to the Prankster's blogspot)where you are responsible for employing the unregulated parking scammers, and have granted [STRIKE]authority[/STRIKE] them to trespass on land without authority or my agreement as landholder. [STRIKE]that you have not infromed me about and gained my permission, [/STRIKE]and as such you are jointly and severally liable for any loss incurred by myself. PCM (UK) act on your authority, so I believe this can be sorted out easily. I will require the regional directors [STRIKE]number[/STRIKE] email or postal contact details (get everything in writing. You can't produce a 'phone call in court. Don't 'phone them again) to escalate this further and establish your final position on this before I decide how to proceed.

    To clarify, there are 5 tickets issued; 3 in April and 2 issued in May, and unfortunately, unless they cancel/rescind all 5 tickets, I do not see any forthcoming resolution other than seeing your legal representative in court for five breaches of the Data Protection Act.
    Also, [STRIKE]did you get a chance to send me[/STRIKE] I have not yet received the agreement between yourselves and PCM (UK) Ltd? Also, estate coy mgr mentioned he will send me your company charter. I will require this. I will also now require that you instruct PCM (UK) not to trespass on my demised parking space (??? in court, wouldn't this imply that I unknowingly allowed/permitted trespass in the past so tickets are valid) No, you were not aware of a requirement until the PCNs started to arrive because there is nothing in your lease that you agreed to that would have drawn your attention to it. You might not have agreed to this had you known about it in advance due to the adverse publicity about the unregulated private parking industry which has recently been the subject of a parliamentary debate. and confirm that PCM (UK) will not issue any more tickets to any vehicle lawfully parked in my allocated space in accordance with my lease. I hereby withdraw any implied right of access to my demised space, and insist that I am granted the quiet enjoyment of my property as defined by my lease.

    I've made a few suggestions for you.
    I married my cousin. I had to...
    I don't have a sister. :D
    All my screwdrivers are cordless.
    "You're Safety Is My Primary Concern Dear" - Laks
  • anitasingh
    anitasingh Posts: 11 Forumite
    Thanks a lot! I will give it another read and send by close of play. Suggestions welcome before close of play today. Thanks.
  • The_Deep
    The_Deep Posts: 16,830 Forumite
    edited 17 May 2017 at 2:37PM
    Both the PPC and the MA are almost certainly trying to restrict you leasehold right to "peaceful enjoyment" of your property, an offence under the Landlord and Tenants Acts. Make the pay.

    Read what happened when a PPC took on a barrister in similar crcumstances.

    http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?377246-UKPC-liable-for-trespass-**SUCCESS**

    Have you read this?

    https://bmpa.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/213077149-Jopson-v-Homeguard-2016-
    You never know how far you can go until you go too far.
  • Coupon-mad
    Coupon-mad Posts: 130,624
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    Why doesn't everyone in this situation adapt the LBC written by LoadsofChildren123 in hairray's case, only this week?

    No link, just saying...
    PRIVATE 'PCN'? DON'T PAY BUT DON'T IGNORE IT (except N.Ireland).
    CLICK at the top of this/any page where it says:
    Forum Home»Motoring»Parking Tickets Fines & Parking - read the NEWBIES THREAD
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