NCP Phone Payment Dispute

pianissimo

I parked in a NCP car park at about 9am. They have a pay by phone system so, later that day (about 1pm), I phoned and paid for my parking (which has to be in units of 24 hours). I got back about 6pm to find a ticket, timed at 10am, claiming that I hadn't paid.

I wrote (d'oh!) asking them to cancel the notice because I had paid. They claim that it's payable because at the time it was issued I hadn't paid and the terms and conditions say that you have to buy your ticket "before leaving your vehicle".

The ticket says that the "full terms & conditions" are displayed in the car park, and they do not include anything about timings.

Has this happenend to anyone else?
Should I write back again to argue this point?
If I just leave it, what will happen?

Thank you.

sarahg1969

Is this a private NCP car park or a council car park, managed by NCP?

If the former, they've been paid, and have lost nothing. You don't owe them a penny.

If the latter, post all the docs for us to see.

pianissimo

Thanks, Sarahg.

I'm not certain, but I think it's a private car park. There's no mention of a council's name on the paperwork, although the fairly-recent redevelopment of the station area was partly funded from my council tax. How could I tell for sure?

In my letters I have said that I paid for the parking because the t&cs do not specify a time limit there is no further obligation. If I were to continue writing I might ask why they sold me a ticket after they had put the notice on the car. But after seeing the comments on this forum, I might not bother with even that.

sarahg1969

If it mentions T&Cs, it's private. You can safely ignore.

pianissimo

Thanks, again, Sarahg. I'm taking it that I don't have to do anything, and I will not reply to any further correspondence. Gulp!

pianissimo

Oh no! *quivers with fright*. Today I got a 'Pre-Legal Notification'. I'm shaking in my boots...