Parking Eye PCN - Closed Retail Park

danny27

Hi, could do with some advice please on what to do regarding a Parking Eye PCN i have received

I took some friends to town the a week or so ago and i parked in a small car park for 2 shops and left my car i there this was late at night and had a drink with my friends, i returned to my car and left, then to my surprise a few days later received a parking charge notice for £90 or £54 if i paid within 14 days from parking eye stating the maximum time for parking was 1 hour and i had breached the terms and conditions of the car park. to be honest i didn't see the sign or know there was a 1 hour limit but i am surprised by this as the retail (not sure how it can be a retail park with only 2 shops on it) park wasn't even open, my question how should i approach this next? after looking around online i seem to have come across many different responses to dealing with this companies so do i -

- Ignore them (although a lot of people say not to anymore)

- Pay the reduced amount before the 14 days are up

- Appeal (and how would i go about do this?)

- Contact one of the stores on the park and explain to them they are trying to charge people when the shop isn't even open and tell them i shop there a fair bit in the past and i would be taking my custom elsewhere and reporting the retail park to watchdog etc.

what i don't get is how they can try to charge me when they aren't even providing a service as the shops were shut. also if it went to court would i have a case?


Thanks for any help

Stroma

I presume this is England or Wales ?

You appeal, say that you didn't see any signs, their pre estimate of loss is nowhere near what they are claiming, the shops were closed so there is no loss. And so on, don't admit to be being the driver though ! Just appeal as the registered keeper, keep it in the third person.

When they reject that come back here for help going to popla, google it

danny27

England, is there anywhere i can get a template appeals letter i can use?

thanks for advice

bod1467

Just read any of the MANY threads here. Most include template letters, for both initial appeal and POPLA.

As said, write everything in terms of the registered keeper. Make no reference to the driver. (So, don't say "I didn't see any signs", say "The signage at this site is inadequate and confusing", or similar).

danny27

Stroma wrote: »

I presume this is England or Wales ?

You appeal, say that you didn't see any signs, their pre estimate of loss is nowhere near what they are claiming, the shops were closed so there is no loss. And so on, don't admit to be being the driver though ! Just appeal as the registered keeper, keep it in the third person.

When they reject that come back here for help going to popla, google it

would something along the lines of the appeal letter on parking cowboys be ok? (i'd post link but won't let me)

Guys_Dad

Too complicated. Search here for "POPLA appeal" in a thread title and you will find some. https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4717353 post #70 is a good place to start.

danny27

So confused :S as everywhere says to appeal in different ways, Guys Dad in my circumstances on what grounds would you appeal?

Coupon-mad

We all appeal on similar grounds. How to win at POPLA in simple linked examples and information:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/62180281#Comment_62180281

Shorter and longer examples but all with the same winning points which suit 99% of cases.

In addition, for your amusement and confidence-building so you can see you WILL WIN, I presume you've noticed the 'POPLA decisions' sticky thread at the top of the forum? Not confusing to read that at all as long as you start at the end (most recent decisions). Work your way backwards on that thread; ignore any chat and skim-read each ParkingEye POPLA decision. Spot all the recent cases with Parking Eye which shows them losing on the same appeal point again and again and again! We do win 100% of the time right now.

Guys_Dad

danny27 wrote: »

So confused :S as everywhere says to appeal in different ways, Guys Dad in my circumstances on what grounds would you appeal?

Danny, let's be hypothetical for a second.

Suppose you had been caught doing 35 mph in a 30 mph limit. You get to the Magistrates court and they say "Guilty. Lock him up for 2 years".

You would get a brief to appeal the sentence, not the verdict.

So that's the case here. You are appealing the "sentence" of £100 that does not fit the "crime",

So, you major on the "No genuine pre-estimate of loss" point.

Also, suppose the PPC didn't have the right to charge you 1p as they didn't have a valid contract with the landowner? So you demand that they produce the contract in question that actually specifies that they are allowed to charge you.

Going back to the "crime" of speeding. Suppose that there were no 30mph signs up and it wasn't obvious that you were in built up area. Would that be fair? So you challenge the signage of the park in question. Obviously the signage was inadequate or you would have seen it.

Basically, that's enough for you to be getting on with and hopefully understand the appeals you have been pointed to. Now do a draft of your appeal and let's see it.

danny27

Thank you guys so much for advice, after reading around for a hour or 2 last night as help me a lot in how to tackle this.

right so here is what I've come up with to send to parking eye if you'd be so kind to read and point out anything i should change/reword

Name:

PCN Reference No:

Vehicle Registration No:

As the registered keeper of the vehicle above, I'm writing to appeal the parking charge notice issued to me on the grounds stated below -

1. Signage -The signage at the entrance of the car park where the PCN was issued isn't lit, thus making it difficult for drivers to see the signage upon entering the car park and read the signs whilst entering at night.

2. Genuine pre-estimate of loss - The parking charge amount of £XX.XX doesn't represent a genuine loss to ParkingEye LTD. as the sole purpose of the car park is to provide 'free' parking to the retail park, and as there was no stores open at this time there can be no loss.

I look forward to receiving your acknowledgement within 14 days and as there are no ‘exceptional circumstances’ your comprehensive reply within 35 days (in accordance with the BPA AOS Code of Practice B.22.8). I will then be able to make an informed decision as to how I deal with your Parking Charge Notice – Notice to Keeper.

If you reject this challenge or fail to address the issues that have been raised then, in accordance with the BPA AOS Code of Practice 22.12, please ensure that you enclose all the required information (including the necessary ‘POPLA code’) so that I may immediately refer the matter for their decision.

If you fail to follow any of the procedures outlined in the BPA AOS Code of Practice or your legal requirements under the Protection of Freedoms Act, or the requirements of the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct then I will make a formal complaint to the DVLA Data Sharing Policy Group, D16


Thanks again

Guys_Dad

Very good appeal, very professional and well researched.

Looking forward to reading your POPLA appeal.