Can I ignore my 'parking charge notice' from Euro Car Parks?

Happychappy

Has anyone any knowledge of whether someone has ever been taken to court when the driver was identified by the registered keeper?

A guy had his car in for service and a main dealer lent him a courtesy car, he overstayed at Lidl, a non charging car park, i.e. 90 minute sign but not pay and display. Euro Parking applied to the dealer who provided his name address and phone number and now he, or his wife as he works and the calls are always daytime, is now being bombarded with phone calls ?

taffy056

At least the company passed the details on in a lot of cases they just pay then chase the person to repay them.

The advice is to ignore them its that simple, you can stop them calling you by threatening them with a harassment claim and logging all their calls. It depends how they want to approach this.

Coupon-mad

Happychappy wrote: »

Has anyone any knowledge of whether someone has ever been taken to court when the driver was identified by the registered keeper?

A guy had his car in for service and a main dealer lent him a courtesy car, he overstayed at Lidl, a non charging car park, i.e. 90 minute sign but not pay and display. Euro Parking applied to the dealer who provided his name address and phone number and now he, or his wife as he works and the calls are always daytime, is now being bombarded with phone calls ?

Nope, it hasn't happened and will not happen to you, because Euro Car Parks don't do Court (I don't think the cases cited by the BPA were reliable).

Why is he allowing the phone calls to persist? Next time tell them that the 'alleged debt is denied and that they must return the file to the originating company, he will see them in Court if they feel they have a claim but any other contact is harassment'.

PHONE DOWN.

Stephen_Leak

Happychappy wrote: »

Has anyone any knowledge of whether someone has ever been taken to court when the driver was identified by the registered keeper? <snip>

Yes. But not by ECP. And they lost. See VCS Parking Control vs. Ronald Ibbotson, S!!!!horpe, 2012.

Happychappy

Stephen_Leak wrote: »

Yes. But not by ECP. And they lost. See VCS Parking Control vs. Ronald Ibbotson, S!!!!horpe, 2012.

Stephen, thanks for the link, a very interesting judgment which I would imagine by now is closed by the enforcement companies tightening up their own contracts with the stores they allege they represent and getting written authority to issue proceedings, rather than "enforce".

The judge alluded to the actual losses incurred, compared to the business costs in running their sites which the enforcement companies were claiming, it was a shame this wasn't fully explored and the judgment given on basis of the lack of the actual losses, rather than the lack of authority to issue proceedings? but a very switched on Judge

Coupon-mad

Happychappy wrote: »

Stephen, thanks for the link, a very interesting judgment which I would imagine by now is closed by the enforcement companies tightening up their own contracts with the stores they allege they represent and getting written authority to issue proceedings, rather than "enforce".

You'd imagine wrong, because there's more! And it's not just about getting written authority to issue proceedings. A retail or land owner would actually have to grant the PPC a proprietoral interest in the land (unlikely with a landowner and unlikely with a retailer as many of them just lease the land from the local Council!):

VCS -v- HMRC (appeal lost)

''no right to park could have been, or was, offered by VCS to the motorist. Motorists who parked in the car park were generally already permitted to park by the client, the landowner.

We have found, firstly, that VCS had no right to claim damages in trespass against motorists who parked in breach of the relevant restrictions, and accordingly 5 that the penalty charges did not constitute, in VCS’s hands, such damages. Ssecondly, we have found that there was no contract between VCS and the motorist, and that accordingly the penalty charges could not constitute damages for breach of such a contract.''
:):)

cepheus

Euro car parks have just taken over from the local council where I live, which means they now use cameras not barriers. It does beg the question though, if they can't enforce the ticket how can they run a parking business?

Martin has a section on it here. This seems to suggest you ignore it

Private parking firms CAN'T fine you. Tickets at supermarkets or private car parks may be disguised as fines, but they're really just invoices. Like any invoice, if it's unfair, tell 'em & don't just pay

but then he seems to suggest they can take you to court and explains an elaborate appeal procedure !
How to fight private parking tickets

What to do depends on who the ticket's from, the situation, and your attitude to confrontation. For both of the options below, we've included a suggested approach, and a militant approach - for those who want to stick two fingers up at the parking firms.

If I understand this correctly, because they can't fine you doesn't mean they can't force you to pay through the courts? It's just that they probably won't bother to go to court in most cases.

Stroma

Yes we know, can I ask why you posting on a thread that is 6 months old?

pogofish

There is a load of thread reviving going-on tonight - Maybe some chancers are trying to bury the up to date info?

Coupon-mad

cepheus wrote: »

Euro car parks have just taken over from the local council where I live, which means they now use cameras not barriers. It does beg the question though, if they can't enforce the ticket how can they run a parking business?

Martin has a section on it here. This seems to suggest you ignore it

but then he seems to suggest they can take you to court and explains an elaborate appeal procedure !
How to fight private parking tickets



If I understand this correctly, because they can't fine you doesn't mean they can't force you to pay through the courts? It's just that they probably won't bother to go to court in most cases.

And Martin's article is from 4 years ago! :rotfl:

Here is the current forum, read here:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=163