Car Parking Partnership at university

Clairyt

PS - I don't actually know of anyone of know anyone who knows of anyone who has actually had their degree witheld!!

taffy056

Can I point out that you haven't done anything illegal, to even have the thought you have broken any laws is something you need to get out of. For clarity, these tickets you have had are in fact invoices requesting payment, nothing more. They are not Penalty Charge Notices issued by councils or Fixed Penalty Notices from the police, they are just speculative invoices from a private company. They have no weight in law, and should simply be ignored as it will not go further than empty threats.

IanManc

taffy056 wrote: »

Can I point out that you haven't done anything illegal, to even have the thought you have broken any laws is something you need to get out of.

I agree.

I think there are two issues that the NUS can help you with. The first - whether the charge is really a "debt to the university" - can be sorted out, once and for all, very quickly. The second - that a jobsworth in a hi-viz is harassing people about whether they've paid the "fines" he's dished out - is another thing that they can take up on behalf of students. Whether "fines" have been paid is nothing to do with a parking attendant or a university security man, and he shouldn't pestering people about it or telling students they can't graduate if they don't pay. His behaviour is inappropriate and I think it is bullying. The NUS is a union which exists to protect its members just like any other union, and they can address this issue too.

As well as that, as I said earlier, you actually paid for your parking, so the university has already had what is owing to it.

Coupon-mad

IanManc wrote: »

I agree.
The second - that a jobsworth in a hi-viz is harassing people about whether they've paid the "fines" he's dished out - is another thing that they can take up on behalf of students. Whether "fines" have been paid is nothing to do with a parking attendant or a university security man, and he shouldn't pestering people about it or telling students they can't graduate if they don't pay. His behaviour is inappropriate and I think it is bullying. The NUS is a union which exists to protect its members just like any other union, and they can address this issue too.

.

That's a very valid point and I agree that the OP should stick his/her neck out and raise this with the Student Union onsite and/or NUS, it is harassment.

Make sure you do not say who was driving the car (they will assume it was you, Clairyt but it needn't necessarily have been, could have been another student at the wheel or a friend/relative on any given day). Never furnish a PPC with information, especially who the driver was, it just covers you further to know they don't know! So when discussing it say 'the car was parked' and don't identify which driver did or didn't find a fake PCN - but you can say you know that the registered keeper isn't liable, even if any 'worthless windscreen flyers' have been issued by a private company. It's all irrelevant but the harassment of you is not.

There is a similar thread with similar questions about with-holding degrees (won't happen) asked on pepipoo at the moment which is also a Uni who use CPP (aka Liberty Printers in fact, tons of threads about them on t'internet!):

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=67022

Pepipoo posters have gone off on a bit of a tangent having made sure the OP of that thread is happy to ignore fake PCNs, but much of what's been posted recently is very tongue in cheek!

HO87

IanManc wrote: »

I agree.

I think there are two issues that the NUS can help you with. The first - whether the charge is really a "debt to the university" - can be sorted out, once and for all, very quickly. The second - that a jobsworth in a hi-viz is harassing people about whether they've paid the "fines" he's dished out - is another thing that they can take up on behalf of students. Whether "fines" have been paid is nothing to do with a parking attendant or a university security man, and he shouldn't pestering people about it or telling students they can't graduate if they don't pay. His behaviour is inappropriate and I think it is bullying. The NUS is a union which exists to protect its members just like any other union, and they can address this issue too.

I may have been too oblique in my earlier post but my point is along exactly these lines. The hi-viz wearer's conduct may amount to making an unwarranted demand with menaces. If this was to be run as part of a case in a county court then some nimble footwork may be required to extricate him and his supervisors from the brown and sticky. Issuing invoices is one thing. Attempting to collect them as well brings a new slant to the behaviour of staff involved in self ticketing operations.

For the sake of clarity in this case I believe that it will be found that the hi-viz wearer who issued the invoice is employed as a security officer by the university. The invoices are "collected" by CPP through their back-office operation which if I recall correctly, is based in Northampton, or at least uses an NN PO box number. CPP have their head office in the Thornton Heath area of south London

As and when CPP collect the outstanding sum they deduct their cut and forward the remainder to the Uni concerned. That is the sole extent of the involvement of CPP as a "third party".

wdyw

Coupon-mad wrote: »

The result shown from Manchester MET University made me LOL! They say that 'Car Parking Partnership [are] specialist car park operators'...:rotfl:And if you click on their link, apparently 'If you don’t have a permit for your car and you park on either campus, you will be fined up to £70.' Yeah, a fine, of course you have the authority to fine people MMU!!

The actual signs at MMU say you are entering an agreement with the university and if you don't follow the procedure described below, you agree to pay an additional parking charge of £70. etc etc

THe word "fine" is never used.

taffy056

wdyw wrote: »

The actual signs at MMU say you are entering an agreement with the university and if you don't follow the procedure described below, you agree to pay an additional parking charge of £70. etc etc

THe word "fine" is never used.

Well that sign is misleading then, you are entering an agreement with the parking company (allegedly) besides are they members of the BPA ? Are they in their AOS scheme ? Seriously doubt it!

If the uni has a legal dept ask the lecturers about the legality of these invoices

HO87

BPA AOS current membership list identifies the following as members - Liberty Printers (AR & RF Reddin) Ltd also T/A Liberty Services Ltd and Car Parking Partnership Ltd (NOT Car Parking Partnership).

However, once again we find ourselves back in the old familiar territory of the BPA being none too specific (or is it none too careful?) about which legal entities enjoy membership and which ones don't. I have previously raised this specific issue directly with Steve Clark at the BPA and was assured it was being addressed. Clearly something has gone adrift. Again.

Liberty Printers (AR & RF Reddin) Ltd is a clearly defined and readily identifiable member. Previously the company has used the trading title "Car Parking Partnership" and as such was a previous BPA AOS member in that form. Car Parking Partnership Ltd is also a clearly identifiable entity and apart from the fact that it has only been trading from the middle of last year having previously been dormant, there are no issues. However, as I have been at pains to point out to the BPA in the past, Liberty Services Ltd does not legally exist having been dissolved at the end of 2010. In any event that company was not in any way linked to Liberty Printers or any other companies of that group but was a small, local computer company based in Leven in Scotland.

The CPP website clearly states that it is a trading title of Liberty Printers (A R & R F Reddin) Ltd. However, CPP as a trading title is not declared as a member of the BPA AOS. Nor is there is any indication that Car Parking Partnership Ltd have taken over the website nor the administration of the tickets so which entity is doing what?

I have previously impressed on the BPA that PPC's are not unknown to "phoenix" (although I am not suggesting that is what is being done in the case of CPP) and being, apparently, a little free and easy or at least somewhat slap-dash in the administration of membership details made something of a mockery of the protection they are expected to extend to the data of the public in their role as gatekeeper to the AOS and thus the DVLA "electronic link". I argued that such carelessness or lack of attention to detail would do nothing for the credibility of the BPA in the eyes of the public.

I feel another email to the BPA coming soon.

muckybutt

Just thought i'd throw these into the debate, these signs are at Bradford Uni...fines ! and penalties mentioned !!! naughty wording or what ?

HO87

muckybutt wrote: »

Just thought i'd throw these into the debate, these signs are at Bradford Uni...fines ! and penalties mentioned !!! naughty wording or what ?

And the use of PO Box 597, Northampton tells us that the actual collection and back-office work is carried out by CPP.