Successful complaints about private parking tickets - how to get them cancelled!

Umkomaas

nopcns said:

FinancialDunce said:

SUCCESS STORY! Nearly two years after the ParkingEye PCN and with a County Court date set for later this year, I just received a Notice of Discontinuance from DCB Legal.

Location: Welcome Break Membury
Claimant: ParkingEye
Claimant's solicitors: DCB Legal
Defence used: Disability discrimination under The Equality Act 2010 (neurodiversity / ADHD) and insufficient signage.

Here's a link to the original thread with a full update and defence submitted. Hopefully this win will be useful for others citing disability discrimination and for neurodivergent people.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6427057/county-court-claim-parkingeye-dcb-defence-for-review-discrimination-under-equality-act-2010

Attention @Umkomaas, AOBTD for the DCB Legal discontinuation thread.

Did it a week ago. 😉

consciousincompetent

Another success vs a ParkingEye ANPR system, trying to charge me for an 'overstay' when my EV was on charge.

Plan A didn't work, even tried talking to the store manager in person, but to no avail. Had a few days of emails back and forth with Lidl customer service before I submitted my appeal via the ParkingEye website. Used the template in the Newbies thread (below). Added a sentence about being an EV on charge. I got the note of cancellation within three working days, and checked on their appeal website where it shows a £0 charge. Surprisingly quick turnaround, I think they know they don't have a leg to stand on.

Appeal filled in via the parkingeye website:

I dispute your 'parking charge', as the keeper of the vehicle. I deny any liability or contractual agreement and I will be making a complaint about your predatory conduct to your client landowner.

There will be no admissions as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn. Since your PCN is a vague template, I require an explanation of the allegation and your evidence. You must include a close up actual photograph of the sign you contend was at the location on the material date as well as your images of the vehicle.

If the allegation concerns a PDT machine, the data supplied in response to this appeal must include the record of payments made - showing partial VRNs - and an explanation of the reason for the PCN, because your Notice does not explain it.

The vehicle in question is an EV and was refuelling in a designated EV charging bay for the duration of stay.

I attached a screenshot of a receipt for my payment to podpoint (not even for the same day, but it worked)

Might be worth adding a "I charged my EV and got a letter" section to the newbies thread with a modified pro forma statement? Or just a sentence or two to add to the pro-forma for those of us caught out. As someone pointed out in another thread, the charging times (which are getting longer as batteries get bigger) are often longer than the 90 or 120 minute stopover times - probably quite on purpose! I imagine as EVs continue to proliferate, this specific brand of racketeering will only increase.

Little_Miss_Pedant

Thanks to all on this and the related boards - I emailed the site manager of West Quay Retail Park in Southampton after receiving a PCN when my P&D ticket had flipped over on the dashboard on a blustery day. 

My email was sent 7pm, by 6.30am I had received his reply: 

"This is unfortunate and I feel your statements below are unwarranted, and I totally refute your suggestions that we operate in a predacious and harassing manner, I have been the manager here for some 25 years and can ensure you that our polies are fair and ethical.

 

In your email below, you make the following statements:

 

We attempt to extort money.

We issue ‘unregulated’ Parking Charge Notices (PCN)

We issue ‘exploitative PCN’s.

We operate aggressively.

We operate in a predacious and harassing manner.

 

All the above assumptions made on your part, are simply wrong. We always operate in the interests of our tenants and customers.

 

Britannia Parking Ltd. are a professional parking management company, who are regulated by the BPA and operate according to strict guidelines, this they have done for many years with very few complaints. Bad online reviews are usually made by those who have received a PCN; by not following the clearly indicated site parking rules, put in place for the benefit of all.

 

We would much prefer that customers park according to our rules, which all customers contract to do by entering the car park and passing the signage at each entrance. Our rules are implemented to ensure a smooth parking system of operation in this busy inner city, which is open to abuse.

 

Abuse of this car park comes in many forms; one such method is to deliberately turn a discarded ticket found on the floor, upside down so it cannot be checked.

 

Our car parks are termed ‘Pay & Display’ and the emphasis is on the customer, to ensure that they ‘display’ a valid parking ticket, obtained from our machines. On this occasion a valid ticket was not displayed on the day of your visit.

 

However, as we are a fair and ethical car park operator, we shall on this occasion cancel this PCN, but emphasise these rules exist for the harmony of all, it is down to each customer to check that they are displaying a ticket before walking away from their vehicle."

Great that the PCN has been cancelled - interesting however that he responds as "we" - my email was very complimentary of the retail park but disparaging of the parking company. Clearly he recognises no distinction between the two. 

Umkomaas

Britannia will have written that for him. We see many examples of this with various PPCs 

Le_Kirk

If they really want the ticket to be displayed the correct way up, why don't they provide a sticky back so it can be affixed to the windscreen (lie so may proper parking companies) and that way it cannot ever be a "fluttering ticket"  Help themselves to help themselves but of course that way no money can be made!

Umkomaas

Le_Kirk said:

If they really want the ticket to be displayed the correct way up, why don't they provide a sticky back so it can be affixed to the windscreen (lie so may proper parking companies) and that way it cannot ever be a "fluttering ticket"  Help themselves to help themselves but of course that way no money can be made!

They just help themselves to the money!

Coupon-mad

That reply did actually come from Britannia because it says "as we are a fair and ethical car park operator, we shall on this occasion cancel this PCN".

Time will tell, Britannia.   ANPR should not even be in the hands of private firms IMHO. By your conduct you and your ilk and in particular the 'thug-mentality' greedy roboclaim firms) will be judged in the end.  If PPC greed is not stamped out enough by the Code of Practice, then we will ultimately have to push for ANPR to be banned within legislation.  People like us will still be here all the time the parking industry rinses people.

12b3

PLAN A success:

Successful cancellation of fine in Brent Cross shopping centre by complaining to shopping centre management 

If you get a fine in one of the mixed use bays complain and get it removed, details of my experience in this thread:

Brent Cross Shopping Centre Fine - UKPC Confusing signage for Children parking and Electric vehicles - Page 2 — MoneySavingExpert Forum

You can use the form on their contact us page on their site:

Contact Us in London | Brent Cross Shopping Centre

JoeN1988

Another success for Plan A for myself this morning. Euro Car Parks @ The Harvester,  Bassets Pole, Sutton.

A brief read of the reviews on Trip Advisor show that customers are regularly being "fined" (and paying 😬) by these clowns.

Quick phone call to the manager had it cancelled with an apology. Unbelievable how they continue to use ECP and that particular system.

Pippaki

Just wanted to say thanks to this forum. I got a parking charge notice cancelled by Lidl. OH mistakenly put my number plate rather than his own in the machine and got a PCN a few days later. A couple of messages to customer support with evidence of purchases on the day got the ticket cancelled. Thank you