Parking Charge Notice from Premier Park

HobbitGirl

Hi everyone.

I received a parking charge notice from a company called Premier Park on 20th February.

I wrote a letter of appeal to the company and have now received a reply stating that the ticket was correctly issued and to pay up

What should i do now?

I don't want to pay and i see a lot saying just ignore them but to be honest i am scared! Are they really cowboy scammers just trying their luck??

Please help/advise... x

Stroma

Yes they really are cowboys. As you appealed did they give you a popla verification code if its England or Wales ?

HobbitGirl

It is England (Bournemouth) and no POPLA code - the letter states that i need to write to request this.

Stroma

You shouldn't have to request anything as they should have given you this with the rejection, if you want to go forward with a popla appeal ask for it, if they don't supply it by the end of the month it's game over for them.

Though the easiest option is to ignore them, it depends how militant you are, and if you want to cost them money.

Coupon-mad

HobbitGirl wrote: »

It is England (Bournemouth) and no POPLA code - the letter states that i need to write to request this.

Either demand it and say you will be taking the matter to POPLA at their expense (making it clear you know what POPLA is about and that they have to fund it).

Or wait until 35 days have elapsed from when they would have received your appeal (assumed to be 2 working days after you sent it, if posted, and straight away - in working hours - if emailed). Then after that period you could email or write to tell them they have breached the BPA code by not providing a POPLA verification code within the timescale required and that any further correspondence will be harassment and their breaches will then be reported to the BPA and DVLA.

I would take the second option if it were me.

HobbitGirl

Thanks for your advice. Having looked at the BPA Code of Practice i see the following:

22.12 If you reject a challenge you must:
• tell the driver how to make an appeal to POPLA. This
includes providing a template ‘notice of appeal’ form, or
a link to the appropriate website for lodging an appeal
• give the driver a reasonable amount of time to pay
the charge before restarting the collection process.
We recommend that you allow at least 35 days from
the date you rejected the challenge.

Does this therefore mean that they must provide the POPLA VERIFICATION CODE as standard with their rejection letter without me needing to request it again?

The rejection letter from Premier Park does give the POPLA web address but states that if i require this code i must request in writing (no email details given) within 7 days.

trisontana

They should have supplied the code. Several PPCs are failing to send these codes and employing delaying tactics. Somebody over on PePiPoo raised this point and this is part of the answer they received from POPLA:-

The operator should provide the verification code with the rejection. If, for example, an appeal form is sent to POPLA without a verification code, it will be returned for this to be obtained. It should be put on the form itself by the operator but is sometimes contained only in the letter. We are aware of situations where the appellant says that no verification code was sent to them with the rejection. Although this does not appear to be common, we are monitoring the situation. If you are aware of specific issues in this regard, you may want to take up the matter with the BPA".

Guys_Dad

trisontana wrote: »

They should have supplied the code. Several PPCs are failing to send these codes and employing delaying tactics. Somebody over on PePiPoo raised this point and this is part of the answer they received from POPLA:-

The operator should provide the verification code with the rejection. If, for example, an appeal form is sent to POPLA without a verification code, it will be returned for this to be obtained. It should be put on the form itself by the operator but is sometimes contained only in the letter. We are aware of situations where the appellant says that no verification code was sent to them with the rejection. Although this does not appear to be common, we are monitoring the situation. If you are aware of specific issues in this regard, you may want to take up the matter with the BPA".

Seems to me the answer here is as follows.

1. POPLA have a window of 28 days for you to make an appeal following a rejection from the PPC see here https://www.popla.org.uk/makinganappeal.htm#whencan

2. Wait the 28 days after your receive the PPC rejection without a POPLA code

3. Do nothing till you hear again.

4. When you receive any letters after the 28 days, you write back saying that you reject their demands and, if the choose to take you to court, you will inform the court that they have denied you the opportunity to go through POPLA to adjudicate as they are required to and ask for a dismissal.

Any views from our legal guys on whether the court should then dismiss?

HobbitGirl

Thank you. So how should i proceed from here? Does POPLA view an appeal rejection letter without a code as a BPA code breach?

trisontana

It appears that you have to report this to the BPA . But don't hold your breath. They take ages to follow up any complaints.

In the meantime keep all the paperwork you get from the PPC in case they try to take you to court. You can use that paperwork as evidence that they are not complying with the POPLA rules,

Guys_Dad

HobbitGirl wrote: »

Thank you. So how should i proceed from here? Does POPLA view an appeal rejection letter without a code as a BPA code breach?

DO NOTHING, but keep the rejection letter.

It's a catch 22. You can't go to POPLA without a proper code. So you wait for one. One doesn't arrive within time, POPLA won't accept it after time, except in exceptional circumstances.

So you are denied appealing through the "proper channel".

Wait for any further letters.

You then claim that the PPC are acting unlawfully in not following up the correct procedures as agreed with the BPA, government (POFA 2012) and you look forward to seeing them in court.

Hopefully Game Set and Match, but awaiting a legal opinion on my previous post.