Motorist Should Have Appealed to POPLA: Instead Loses Court Case, £800 Awarded

The_Deep

Another way to do one's bit is to nag Trading Standards Department, although I do have some sympathy for my local lot.

The Labour loonies in my local council would far rather employ Diversity Co-ordinators and Ethnic Community Outreach Workers than waste our money on consumer protection issues.

4consumerrights

Hot_Bring wrote: »

Agreed, there are some that are all too willing to suggest going to court when in fact the safest way of winning at court is to avoid court entirely with POPLA.

It was the implication in 4CR's post that anyone who couldn't help with court cases was a keyboard warrior - and this was implied but less so in your post.

I agree entirely that only those with the expert knowledge should provide advice on court cases - hence why I stay out of those discussions.

Sorry Hot Bring , didnt mean it to sound like that and I certainly wasn't implying that. My point was there are far too many people saying what you should and shouldn't be doing with regards to court claims (mainly) without the hands on work themselves.

4consumerrights

The_Deep wrote: »

They are not huge costs by any means, Probably less than two hours work for a senor partner.

That is not what they claim in their loss statement for this particular site


If anyone has a golden POPLA code and then fails to use it - I am afraid I do not have much sympathy.

Whilst POPLA is not perfect - it is currently the best way to get these charges quashed.

However, having said that - the PPCs have had guidance and are attempting new and creative ways to justify their losses.

Any EVIDENCE pack received MUST be challenged as sadly in another Napier case which went to POPLA via a little help from the forum was lost - this person then received a court claim.

However the claim for this same car park was just the parking charge and filing fee - no solicitor costs incurred.

Despite a defence being submitted - the defendant did bottle up and pay before a hearing.

Redx

bargepole wrote: »

Not bitter at all, but we can and do get a bit peed off when people say "you should fight them all the way to court", or when a defendant loses a case there is a chorus of "Appeal!".


We appreciate that you and many others do help people, on and off forum, to succeed with POPLA appeals, and that in my view remains (for the moment) the best strategy for swatting the PPCs.


But if anyone is going to start giving advice about what people should or shouldn't do regarding a court case, it would be helpful if that advice came from someone who had direct experience and knowledge of how such cases are conducted, and even better if they were able to help in a practical way.

agreed, but another part of the problem is that these court claims like MCOL etc (or debt collector letters) are not really for a parking board, but for some sort of court or debt collector advice board

the only reason they are on here is that its a pcn that kicked off this process , but when its gone beyond that its no longer a parking issue as its a totally different league

we see debt collector and court claim posts on here every week, yet it really needs a forum that is more suited to dealing with the bespoke issues surrounding debt collectors and MCOL claims , whereas the vast majority of us are only helping with ongoing parking issues that havent gone beyond the ADR stages , where we may have some good advice to give and yet have never been inside a court room or dealt with a debt collector or an MCOL

So I totally agree with what you say, which is why I mentioned in another thread that I have written to my MP recently about it

ie:- we do what we can , with the tools we are given

I only wish I did know enough to help out like you obviously do, for which you and the others have my respect, but I have no training in those matters as my career has been different ever since I left school at 16 (and obviously led a sheltered life since , lol)

but I agree with all the points being made in this thread, which is why I will point people at information given by those "in the know" but refuse to actually give out legal advice on the grounds I am not trained in it

but I take my hat off to those like yourself that do help others in some way, be it letters, advice or turning up in court

I also agree its like watching a play where everyone seems to know the script but me , with what I read in these cases

it was for parking tickets a year ago, for me, but I have learned a lot since

gertysingh

bargepole wrote: »

But we need more people to come out from behind their keyboards and help with this - particularly in the North West, the North East, the South West, and North and South Wales. Any volunteers?

Yes - I'd gladly volunteer if I had enough knowledge. I'd be happy to "sit in" if it were allowed to observe to gain some experience. However I have very limited experience and have one scc in progress similar to benefitmaster's case. So feel free to message me if you want a trainee volunteer Otherwise best I can do is sign post