Private Parking Tickets discussion

trisontana

Rupert_Bear wrote: »

I went to a retail park to collect some items from a well known store.
It allowed 20 minutes for collection but I was longer than that and when we returned received a fixed ticket issued by Euro Car Parks. As advised on this site we have not contacted them at all.

However,we received the following letter from a company called Control Account plc they advise as follows;

We have been instructed by our above named Client and regret to note that you have failed to contact them with your proposals for settlement of this overdue account.

This account has been passed to ourselves with firm instructions to commence Ligitation and to obtain Judgement against you. Such a course of action may have an advierse affect on your ability to obtain credit and would include costs, court fees and interest which may disproportionately increase the amount outstaning.

To avoid this please telephone the undersigned within 5 working days of the date of this letter etc etc etc.

Unquote.



Should we just continue to ignore them. They have now increased the fine of nearly £100.00

Cheers.

PS. Just checked and control account plc are debt collectors.

Just ignore, they won't take you to court.

juliescot

Rupert_Bear wrote: »

I went to a retail park to collect some items from a well known store.
It allowed 20 minutes for collection but I was longer than that and when we returned received a fixed ticket issued by Euro Car Parks. As advised on this site we have not contacted them at all.

However,we received the following letter from a company called Control Account plc they advise as follows;

We have been instructed by our above named Client and regret to note that you have failed to contact them with your proposals for settlement of this overdue account.

This account has been passed to ourselves with firm instructions to commence Ligitation and to obtain Judgement against you. Such a course of action may have an advierse affect on your ability to obtain credit and would include costs, court fees and interest which may disproportionately increase the amount outstaning.

To avoid this please telephone the undersigned within 5 working days of the date of this letter etc etc etc.

Unquote.

Should we just continue to ignore them. They have now increased the fine of nearly £100.00

Cheers.

PS. Just checked and control account plc are debt collectors.

Just another in a series of threats and there is no "fine"

Spartacus_Mills

juliescot wrote: »

Just another in a series of threats and there is no "fine"

Wot Julie said.

No fine.

Ignore ignore ignore.

sandyscot

Hello everyone, I previously posted on page 18. I received a pcn from parking eye, I telephoned them before reading the many posts on this forum. I received a second letter from them which I also ignored. I haven't heard anything else for a long time. It appears they have given up trying to get me to pay, but if they haven't they will one day.
I hope this post encourages other people who are worried about pcn notices they receive and to ignore any and all communications from other company's like 'parking eye'.

Methusela

sachaX wrote: »

I posted on pg 29 of this forum, and I havent heard anything yet, although its only been a couple of wks... I am concerned after reading slinkys comments about admitting it was u, as I appealed too. Have I admitted liability and therefore dont have a leg to stand on? After all - I did read the signs, I did leave the car park late... A lorry prevented me exiting on time but still, u do the crime u do the time... All I object to is the amount of the fine as its extortinate... Im worreid its too late 4 me to ignore it...

Hi sashaX, It's obvious from the tone of your posting that you are feeling very worried and maybe a bit desperate. So my first bit of advice is that you should stop hyperventilating and start breathing normally again.

One of the problems with posting on here for advice is that you tend to hear from many helpful people but they all simply say “it's not a legitimate charge - ignore all correspondence and threats”. But sometimes that doesn't seem enough. You probably feel that your situation is different and you need specific advice relating directly to your own situation. Because that situation always seems different from everyone else's. And you're bound to be the only case where the advice won't work.

Well, up to now I have never posted advice to anyone. But if it helps to get you back to normal I'll make an exception. This will get too lengthy for one single posting, so I'll go a step at a time. When you have read each post, please reply to say whether you have understood it, answer my questions and I'll go on a bit further. Others may chip in with extra bits of help as we go. So lets get started.

First, to put your mind at rest about some technicalities. Forget the idea - which appears in your posting - that you committed some kind of crime. Parking in a private car park is not a crime, even if you fail to comply with every aspect of their terms and conditions. Your original post on 7th October said that you had exceeded the free parking time limit and had been “fined”. But a private parking firm cannot “fine” you like the police or local authority. They can only put in a claim to say that they are “charging” you for overstaying (“charge” here means, as in a shop “charging” you for the goods you buy, not like when you are “charged” with a crime).

You say you are worried that by writing to them you have admitted liability. That is incorrect. You wrote an appeal letter, not a letter of admission. In this, you explained how you had been delayed by circumstances that were completely outside your control. That letter will stand you in very good stead if they try to push their claim too far. They should already have cancelled their charge following your explanation but even if they haven't done so yet, that doesn't mean they won't.

Please let me know:-

• Have you had a reply your appeal letter?

• Did their original letter actually use the word “fine” or did they say it was a charge?
• Did they include a leaflet with that letter, explaining how you can contact DVLA and/or the Information Commisioner's Office, in case you felt your information had been misused?

Remember, parking companies rely on frightening people into paying, with threats of solicitors, debt collectors and bailiffs. But the general advice you've already been given is pretty sound and you will have a lot more specific advice soon, so don't worry yourself silly over their scare tactics.
Get back to me soon and you can make a start on “hitting back”.

That will do for my first posting to you, but to help you calm down a bit more, try reading some of the success stories by people who won against parking companies. You will find these in the thread entitled “Parking Ticket Appeals successes and failures”. If you're not sure how to get there:-
At the bottom of this page, where it says “Forum Jump”use the arrow to select“Parking Fines, Tickets & Parking” and click on “GO”.
On the page that brings you to, click on “Parking Ticket Appeals successes and failures”.
Read the following posts:-
# 28 on page 2 from Savvysal; #37 on page 2 from Little RAY;
#42 on page 3 from IAMRUTH; #70 on page 4 from sheridan120;
#89 on page 5 fromj-lo1972uk
None of them are exactly the same as your post but they have one thing in common – they all contacted the parking companies, so “giving the game away”. But they all won in spite of that.

usignuolo

Parking UK Ltd are NOTORIOUS. Someone correct me if I am wrong, but didn't it change hands recently and the businessman who bought it said he did so solely because it was an investment which made large and largely unregulated profits, and he would continue to make them until the law changed. Is it a member of the BPA?

Coblcris

Parking Eye are. Is that the company to which you refer ?

Imposter67

My partner parked in wrong place in Sainsburies when I was away. I then got a ticket as the RK and after checking this site, sent the template letter. But Eurocarparks have replied saying I'm obliged to tell them who it was driving and inform the police if it was stolen etc

I feel intimidated. Do I tell them who was driving or do I hold my ground and just ignore the EuroCarPark letters?

sarahg1969

If you've checked this site, as you say, I think you know the answer to that.

Sput2001

Imposter67 wrote: »

My partner parked in wrong place in Sainsburies when I was away. I then got a ticket as the RK and after checking this site, sent the template letter. But Eurocarparks have replied saying I'm obliged to tell them who it was driving and inform the police if it was stolen etc

I feel intimidated. Do I tell them who was driving or do I hold my ground and just ignore the EuroCarPark letters?

Continue to ignore. And you're NOT obliged to tell them who the driver was.