newbie help needed

iwanttobedebtfree_2

I'm new to the forums but not to this site Today I too have received a court letter from Parking eye, my situation is:

I entered the Rheidol retail site car park Aberystwyth last year, however sightly off this car park is a store called Craft where you can take unwanted household items which are then sold cheaply (mainly to people on benefits etc), I had to wait for someone to help me unload the car then returning to the main car park eventually found a space and continued to shop, I left the car park approx 20 minutes after the free 2hours parking.
I received the 2 letters from Parking Eye which I ignored then had to sign for a letter which at the time I think was the letter before court action, I ignored this one too.
It's been so long after the event (29th June last year) that I thought I'd gotten away with it.
Parking eye are now chasing £150.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Reading into threads and posts in parking prankster etc it appears Trading standards have looked into PE at this site as it is a nightmare at times to get on and off the car park sometimes taking half hour of queuing, this resulted in many motorists being caught due to no fault of their own.

Mrs_Rachel_Trelfa

Hey there, I know the exact car part you are on about as I went to Aber uni. Getting in is an absolute nightmare. The problem is that it 'clocks' you in as you drive in, not when you have parked. Which means you can loose a good 10 -15 mins of your 2 hours. If you had responded to the first letter they would fine you £80 but if you pay within 21 days or something they reduce it to £50. Perhaps this is a welcome lesson on not ignoring fines?

arcon5

Mrs_Rachel_Trelfa wrote: »

Hey there, I know the exact car part you are on about as I went to Aber uni. Getting in is an absolute nightmare. The problem is that it 'clocks' you in as you drive in, not when you have parked. Which means you can loose a good 10 -15 mins of your 2 hours. If you had responded to the first letter they would fine you £80 but if you pay within 21 days or something they reduce it to £50. Perhaps this is a welcome lesson on not ignoring fines?

Maybe you should take a read in this board - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=163

Moral of it all, it's not a fine. Although ignoring it may not have been the best idea.