UKPC Parking Charge on rental car

Stephen_Leak

As in my post, it's not a "fine", it's a "speculative invoice.

However, they haven't said that you are responsible under the terms & conditions of the contract, etc. They know you mean business and aren't going to be a pushover.

As pre-emptive strikes go, I reckon this one looks OK so far.

EHBA

I'd e-mail back and point out that it is not a fine.

The more people who work in the car leasing/rental business who are advised that they are not fines and should not refer to them as fines, the better.

Fine is a much easier word to write and say than speculative and unenforceable invoice. The trouble is these are the wallies in lease/rental businesses who pay PPC charges once they are in the mindset that it is a fine

Askew

Thanks again for the feedback guys

I replied with this:

Dear [Sixt Employee],

Thank you for your prompt response. I am glad to see that your intention is to communicate with me in this matter.

I feel that I should point out though that what was issued is not a 'fine'. A fine can only be issued by authorities like the local council or the traffic police. In fact, private companies like UKPC are prohibited from using the word 'fine' as it confers authority and is therefore misleading.

What they are/will be pursuing is a speculative invoice, sent under the presumption that the recipient will be intimidated, and feels compelled to pay their unlawful penalty charge.

Thank you again for your email.

Best regards,

Askew

Askew

Hello everyone,

after having not heard from Sixt since the last email I posted here, I logged in today to check my credit card statement and to my surprise, there is a charge by Sixt to the tune of 160 euro. I have not received any communication at all by Sixt regarding this, and am considering my next move(s)

I was thinking of going three-pronged .

1.) Order a chargeback on my card.

2.) Contact the branch I rented the car from, because they are the ones that have issued the charge on the card, informing them that I have performed a chargeback and that they have been in direct contravention of their own terms and conditions

3.) Contact the central office of Sixt via email and demand an explanation for their lack of communication in this matter and to inform them I am considering legal action.

Any feedback would be welcome, as it has been before. Mostly wondering if you guys think my 3 points are wise and if I should execute them in the order I posted them in here.

Thank you,
Askew

Askew

Little addition to that: I phoned the branch I rented the car from to confirm this charge was regarding an alleged parking contravention. As it turns out, my initial emails were directed at the wrong department. Their email forms pointed me to an England-based address, but it should have gone to a Northern Irish address, and as such my pre-emptive action never reached the correct person to begin with.

I am a bit lost on how to proceed now, since I feel I cannot exploit that I notified them effectively. It must be noted however, that I used the email contact form on nir.sixt.com and received a reply from trafficfines-uk@sixt.com.

Coupon-mad

The priority has to be a chargeback now. You emailed Sixt at an email addy they advertised and they should have dealt with your information properly and responded properly.

It's not as if Sixt don't know about this issue from at least one previous customer and in that case they 'ran it by their Legal Dept':

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=62531

Once you have asked the card for a chargeback (and they will think about it/argue about it) then move straight on to emailing the right address with your version of the emails shown in that thread. Copy & paste them exactly if need be and do not give up.

Askew

Well, the credit card company refuses to do a chargeback, claiming that it's a problem between me and Sixt. I didn't have time to get into a lengthy discussion just now so dropped it, but plan to phone back tomorrow when I have more time.

ManxRed

Its an unauthorised transaction. Report it as such. You did not authorise this transaction as it breaches the terms and conditions of your contract with Sixt, does it not?

Coupon-mad

Askew wrote: »

Well, the credit card company refuses to do a chargeback, claiming that it's a problem between me and Sixt. I didn't have time to get into a lengthy discussion just now so dropped it, but plan to phone back tomorrow when I have more time.

So just copy & paste the emails the poster used against Sixt in that link. Forget the Bank for the moment then.

Askew

ManxRed wrote: »

Its an unauthorised transaction. Report it as such. You did not authorise this transaction as it breaches the terms and conditions of your contract with Sixt, does it not?

I tried arguing this on the phone earlier but the employee in question did not want to touch it. I was at work and had limited time because I was on my break, and therefore could not ask for their manager, which I plan to do tomorrow.

@Coupon-Mad: I've got that thread bookmarked and will be using it as a resource for my next steps against Sixt. I'm still fuming that they didn't even bother to notify me that they were making this charge, not to mention the unwillingness of the credit card company to back me up here, since it really is none of their business.