Parking fine

clairecymru

I'm sooooooooo mad! I had a parking fine of £30 on 15/9/10 that was reduced to £12 if paid within 14 days. I paid it on the 28/9/10 at £12 and thought no more of it.

Today I received a letter from a debt collection agency for £71 stating that I had not paid the original fine. I went to the car parking office with my bank statement to show them that I had paid the fine but they said that there is nothing that they could do and I would have to take it up with debt collection agency.

My friend who had a parking fine the same day as me and paid the fine the same day as me also had the letter from the debt collection people.

What do I need to do? Will the debt collection people believe me without the receipt that i had when I paid the fine. Will they believe a copy of my bank statement when that could have been from another fine as far as they are concerned?

anewman

If this is from a private company (rather than Council or Police) you can safely ignore, and in fact you could have even gotten away without paying anything in the first place. Remember debt collectors have no powers. They will try and write scary letters to frighten you into paying, see https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2214803 but until they take you to court, which they won't do, they can do absolutely nothing. Ignore ignore ignore, do not contact at all, and only respond to official actual court papers (which will never come and even if they do they will not win).

taffy056

What you and your friend have done is pay a ticket that is not enforceable, you could have simply ignored the scammers, they have passed it onto a bogus debt collector friends saying here's a mug who's paid, try your luck with this!

From now on ignore completely and certainly do not pay ! You have proof you've paid them so there is no loss, not that there was to begin with.

clairecymru

Will this not go against my credit rating though?

anewman

clairecymru wrote: »

Will this not go against my credit rating though?

As there is no credit involved (only an alleged debt) it can only possibly go against your credit rating if it goes to court, you lose, and you do not pay the amount ordered to. As it will not go to court anyway, and even if it does you cannot possibly lose as you have proof of settling the payment, you have nothing to fear.

taffy056

clairecymru wrote: »

Will this not go against my credit rating though?

Claire,

It will not go against your credit rating, how can it there is no credit involved ?

Let me explain how it could effect your rating

1) The parking company takes you to court
2) They win the case
3) You refuse to pay the order within 28 days

Then and only then a ccj could be issued, but you have more chance of winning the lottery jackpot than the above happening, please understand that they can only claim for loss on their alleged contract, you've paid them already, you can prove it so there is no loss!

Sir_Roger_deLodger

All the above advice is correct. Which bunch of low life parasitic scammers is it? We like to name and shame them on here!

clairecymru

Vinci Parking

Sir_Roger_deLodger

clairecymru wrote: »

Vinci Parking

Very well known, nothing to worry about.

d123

clairecymru wrote: »

I'm sooooooooo mad! I had a parking fine

just so you know for the next time, you did not have a parking fine, you were given an unsolicited, unenforceable invoice by a private company masquerading as an enforcement agency.

They have as much authority as you do if you were to walk down your road giving all your neighbours "tickets" for bad parking.
If your neighbour had put one on your car for parking outside his house, would you pay it?

The advice from everyone, including barristers and even a QC on Watchdog is to IGNORE it, the QC even went further and said the only use for it was to make a paper aeroplane.

Dont have any further communication, if the debt agency contacts you again just tell them you have no such debt (odds are the "debt collection agency" is actually still the parking company.

Coupon-mad

clairecymru wrote: »

Vinci Parking

Can I ask, why did you pay them? What on earth made you and your friend both fall for this scam, I am trying soooo hard to understand why people pay these scam fines?

You only had to look on this board, or search Vinci Parking on here or on Google. The info about the scam of private parking tickets is everywhere on the internet and has been on Watchdog twice this year already. Do not contact the PPC nor the debt collectors, they are just time-wasters with no powers whatsover.

PLeeeease tell your friend never, ever, ever to fall for this scam again. At least it was 'only' £12 but you should have just ignored the scammers as you'd just have got the same threatograms. And if everyone pays them the £12 then they continue to harass more and more people, you have inadvertently helped support a protection racket.

Sorry but you are an MSEer and you paid a PPC fine, I am shocked and saddened.