clamped while in car

Coblcris

They must have blocked you in, that is illegal. Sue the clampers and the landowners. where was this exactly, people should be warned about these crooked vultures.

decrement

i know it sounds silly but they really did clamp me that quickly.

it wasnt the yellow big ones around the whole wheel arch, it was a small grey pole thing around one of the alloys, he clamped the back left wheel.


the area it happened in is outside the hayes job centre, west london

and also the area they clamping isnt a parking area as such as it is behind a building in a grassy area between the job centre and the flats, so there are no markings on the floor, just a sign on the wall of the flats

it must be a scam because if you go to where the job centre is (i was dropping someone) you have to go into the grassy area to turn your car, thats where they were waiting (in 3 cars). they had parked their cars in such a way that it was difficult to turn in such a confined space

Paranoid

Hi D

From my considerable experience and research involving succesful court action agains clampers and the landowners allowing them to operate.

Making the reasonable assumption that you were clamped by one of the many 'cowboy' (much too polite) clampers I think you have an excellent case to recover your money AND some compensation. You must see just what the signs say regarding clamping and where they are situated. It has been established that there should be a prominents sign, like at the entrance to the area, which can be judged to have been seen by the motorist. As you did not switch off your engine and the clamper altered your receipt to 'waiting' it is quite likely that any signs saying clamping for unauthorised parking' rather than waiting are invalid anyway.

Appealing to the clampers is likely a waste of time. Write to them saying you are going to bring an action in the county court if they do not return the money within, say 10 days. If they do not reply with a refund within this time complete an N1 claim form, available from the court, or as a download from the court service website. You will be required to pay a small fee, which is added to your claim against the clampers. The claim - if it goes to a hearing will be in the small claims procedure which is before a judge in chambers. In the event the clampers ignore the summons you will get automatic judgement. This will not guarantee that you will get your money back but will put you in a strong position to refer the matter to the Security Industry Authority, and take further action.

In the mean time the Home Office are consulting on further regulation of this wretched industry, which is banned in Scotland. Have your say..!

Any queries or further advice don't hesitate to get in touch

Best wishes. D

Neil_B

So you sue as advised.

Check the signage for clarity, prominence and necessary content.

Check their SIA registration.

Go and get some covert video evidence of the way they behave with other victims.
-

Coblcris

Good advice.

decrement

thanks for the advice guys, i will be pinging off a court threat letter to them in the next few days

Coblcris

"Letter Before Action"

sarahg1969

I'd suggest doing as NeilB says first, and popping down there, carrying out a bit surveillance.

Coblcris

I agree (as above) was only trying to point out what should be sent.
a 'proper' LBA is required.

Paranoid

Hi D

Having replied with a summary of my experiences I see "your" clamping company is listed for "Proposal to Strike off" on the Companies House web site. This means that they will cease to exist, making it very difficult to sue them. By applying to Companies House, with a valid reason, you can get the dissolution stayed.

Frontline Services Ltd began in May 2005 and dissolved after some 18 months, on 14th November 2006. A new Frontline Services Ltd was incorporated on 31st January 2007, six weeks later.

Whether the "new" Front Line Services Ltd are the same folk with some trivial tweaking, or if they have merely acquired the previous company I cannot say (although readily researchable).

In August last year the appointment of one Mohammad Raheel Bhatti as Director and Secretary was terminated.

I have experience of a company applying to be dissolved and then starting a new company with father and son just swapping the role of sole director. The assets were transferred to the new company and they carried on the same business in the same locations as previously. This was to avoid paying a CCJ against the company....!

I had some success suing the landowners "Jointly and Severally" with the clampers. Although the judge found against the landowners he found the clampers the principal villains. I had shown that the landowners had received a substantial number of complaints about the clampers.

I am aware that this is another long-winded reply but feel you should be aware of the pitfalls. I am owed £18,107 further to a CCJ....! Which concentrates my mind somewhat.

Good Luck
P