Concerned re. Highview and DRP

oldmonkey

Hi, I'm getting concerned about ongoing case with Highview that is now with DRP. I've followed everything on here as best I can, including template letters, but to no avail so far.

In mid-February the driver parked on a car park that has recently been taken over by Highview. He walked the 10 yards to the ticket machine and purchased a one hour ticket, which was clearly displayed on the dashboard. 56 minutes later the driver returned to the car and drove off.

A few weeks later I received a letter from Highview stating that there was insufficient evidence that the appropriate parking fee had been paid. Unfortunately I didn't get the letter for a couple of weeks as it was sent to my parents' address, where the vehicle concerned is registered. By the time I received it a second one had been sent, advising of an escalation in action and that the charge had now gone up to £80 from £40.

I responded to Highview by way of appeal in mid-April using the relevant template from this site, but received no response. I wrongly assumed that they had decided to not pursue their claim.

At the start of June I received a letter from DRP advising that as I had failed to pay I was now liable to pay them £149 or face court action. I responded to them with a templated letter from this site. I have now had a further letter from Ian Grantham at DRP giving me two days to pay up in full else I face court action. He advises that the PCN was correctly issued and that I had breached the terms and conditions of the (parking) site use. He also advised that I had no right of appeal, and that using template letters from this site were a waste of time.

Firstly, I did not breach the terms of use, a ticket was purchased and displayed in the vehicle. Highview have this evidence - unless they have only a static camera that miraculously knows when vehicles are started up, they have CCTV footage that will clearly show the driver going to the ticket machine, purchasing a ticket, returning to the vehicle and displayng the ticket. Surely the ticket machine also has an audit trail of when tickets are purchased? Given that this was at 10.25 at night and there were only a handful of other vehicles in the car park, they have the evidence they need that a ticket was purchased. Of course, and not anticipating that I would be challenged on a £1 parking ticket several weeks after purchase, the ticket was binned the following week when the car was cleaned out.

What is my best course of action now? I will not be paying £149.99 to DRP or anyone, under any circumstances. I purchased a ticket and did everything that I was required to do by the terms and conditions of parking notice that was displayed at the site. Should I contact the BPA and even the BBC?

Many thanks

Coupon-mad

Not sure why we need new threads galore this week about DRP letters when the newbies thread covers them and begs for no new threads about these tedious letters.

See this one:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5005511

and see the top thread on the forum, that's why it's there.

I am not being rude but, DRP and Zenith letters = SO WHAT?! We've ignored them for years!

bazster

It wasn't even worth the time it took you to type all that. Highview is a bunch of toothless whiners who never take anyone to court, and DRP (and its alter-ego Zenith) are a bunch of toothless bullies who cannot take anyone to court. Just file the letters and forget them.

If you want to complain to someone complain to your MP about DVLA selling your personal details to scum like Highview.

oldmonkey

Latest DRP letter is a Notice of Intended Court Action, giving me two weeks to pay or it goes to "creditor's solicitor with a recommendation to commence court action". Noting the error they have made in stating that the "contravention" was "parked on private property without a permit" - strange that. The machine that was used to purchase the ticket requires you to put in the car number, so combined with the CCTV footage of the driver going to and from the machine and affixing the ticket very clearly in the window, they had all the evidence they need to show that a valid ticket was purchased. Tempted to take them to court for defamation!

bazster

Who did they defame you to?

Dee140157

Ignore ignore ignore!

Herzlos

If you get a letter from a court about them having started court action, then you'll get advice on here, but at this stage it's all just bluffing. The fake debt collector will write to their client advising court action, since that's pretty much the extend of their authority. You don't have anything to worry about. Keep the letter on the offchance anything comes of it, but don't worry; it's still completely safe.