PCN from VCS due to parking on Wickes car park - do i have a chance?

Coupon-mad

You could write stating:

I am the registered keeper of the car in question and although you appear to have got my details from the DVLA, you have omitted to send me a Notice to Keeper at all. You are now too late to suggest any keeper liability applies because 56 days has passed after the alleged parking event. Whilst I did email you to advise you that Wickes wanted the ticket cancelled, I did not give a postal address and nor did I name the driver. Your reply in the post, having got my address details from the DVLA as keeper of this car, does not negate the need for a Notice to Keeper. If you contend you did send one then send me a copy of it with my POPLA code, which was another omission in your letter. I suggest you cancel the ticket before I complain to the BPA, since this seems to me to be a Level 3 and/or Level 4 sanctionable breach as follows:

3.1
Major failure in communications to customers
4.2
Significant failure in communications to customers[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri]
4.14
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri]Major failure to notify the motorist of the arrangement for POPLA on rejection of appeal.[/FONT]
[/FONT][/FONT]

jhs2zz

Thank you Coupon, Umko. That's extremely useful information! Well they did not completely reject my appeal (yet!), as they did mention in the letter that their "investigation" will continue and upon failure of appeal, I will have the chance to complain to POPLA. But yes I think they did miss the NTK as I still havent received it so far. So I will edit out 4.14 in my reply to them.

jhs2zz

I can update that after I sent a letter as suggested by Coupon, today I received their response with written confirmation that the the ticket has now been cancelled

I still have one question. In the letter there is this clause:

"... note that we would only issue a Notice to Keeper if we did not receive a serviceable response to the PCN (in the form of a Notice to Driver) affixed to the vehicle..."
, which appears to be the response to my comment that they did not send me a NtK in time.

My question is does that make sense? Does the fact that I sent them an email asking for a written confirmation if the ticket was cancelled (because the Wickes' shop manager said they would request it for me) but without revealing my address nor naming the driver, make them exempt from sending me the NtK? If that's the case, then anyone who gets a windscreen PCN should just avoid contacting the parking company in any case until receiving an NtK?

In any case, thank you all once again!

Coupon-mad

No it makes no sense - there no way in the POFA 2012 that they can omit a NTK from the chain of letters. In the case of a windscreen ticket, there must be a 'PCN' then between day 29 and day 57 the keeper must receive a 'NTK'. If not then it's not a POFA compliant allegation and the charge could only be aimed at a driver after that.

If they get an appeal after the PCN on the windscreen but they still haven't established the name and address of the driver (which they hadn't because you gave them neither piece of information) they should have just sent a NTK. I am amazed PPCs don't seem to get it!

Let's not tip them off too much though so I won't add any more...they can read the Act same as we did!