DPA and PPC

born_3

In another parish I frequent, a member posted that he/she had been ticketed by a PPC at an event and asking what to do. I suggested that he/she come here, have a read of the stickies and post on the forum (which happened).

Back in the parish, there have been a number of "...ignore it..." type posts (as expected) but a number of increasingly irate posts have started to appear from a lawyer (so he/she has claimed) pointing out that you don't have to go down the soft appeal, POPLA etc route but use the fact that the PPC has electronically stored your details which may be in contravention of the data protection act (DPA). Is this bollox (with a couple of the redacted comments by him/her concerning the PPC and PCN)?

...Private companies issue under contract law, in that you are agreeing to their terms to park.

If they write to you after you fail to pay you should respond by making a request that they delete all data of you under the data protection act...

...They'll get your details via the DVLA (costs like two quid) and send some letters to you. Once you've received the second one it's harassment. Write to them stating that you are pursuing a case of harassment against them and from that point forward they are to destroy any data they have on you under the DPA. If they continue to send you letters they've then failed to comply with a basic data protection request - this is a big no no...

The_Deep

But what about if you bilk, and owe the PPC money, (up to £12.00 in a MSA), do they not have a right to try to get it back?

Coupon-mad

Is this bollox

Yes, maybe it's a PPC employee deliberately posting crap to divert people from appealing and winning at POPLA! This is not lawyer speak, sounds more like a teenager or a thick PPC idiot:

...They'll get your details via the DVLA (costs like two quid) and send some letters to you.

Once you've received the second one it's harassment.

That's bollox! Harassment isn't as simple as getting 2 letters from a PPC!

Of course PPCs can store data - it's part of their ICO registration and within their KADOE contract with the BPA that they can, for the purposes of pursuing a PCN where they have 'reasonable cause' to get DVLA data.

bazster

I concur, purest bovine excrement. If this guy really is a lawyer don't ask him to do your conveyancing or get you off a murder rap.

born_3

The_Deep wrote: »

But what about if you bilk, and owe the PPC money, (up to £12.00 in a MSA), do they not have a right to try to get it back?

Dunno mate, I never went to oxbridge (is that where they give out MSAs?).

Coupon-mad

DP's not an Oxford or Cambridge man, are you DP?

HO87

I disagree - to an extent.

It has been suggested in the past that in circumstances where the recipient of a PPC PCN rejects it and puts the PPC (or their fellow bottom-dwellers, the debt collectors) on notice that he will regard any further contact as harassment then he can also issue what is known as a Section 10 notice (s.10 Data Protection Act) requiring the PPC to desist from processing their data further and providing the recipient with evidence of them having done so - usually by way of a letter from the PPC's solicitors to confirm the same.

Although I believe that it has been used on a few occasions I don't know to what effect or, ultimately, what the outcome was.

born_3

HO87 wrote: »

I disagree - to an extent.

It has been suggested in the past that in circumstances where the recipient of a PPC PCN rejects it and puts the PPC (or their fellow bottom-dwellers, the debt collectors) on notice that he will regard any further contact as harassment then he can also issue what is known as a Section 10 notice (s.10 Data Protection Act) requiring the PPC to desist from processing their data further and providing the recipient with evidence of them having done so - usually by way of a letter from the PPC's solicitors to confirm the same...

Hmmmmm... I've just read this from the ico:

http://ico.org.uk/for_organisations/data_protection/the_guide/principle_6/damage_or_distress

Does this:

...In addition, an individual has no right to object to processing if:

• they have consented to the processing;
• the processing is necessary:
  - in relation to a contract that the individual has entered into; or
  - because the individual has asked for something to be done so they can enter into a contract;
• the processing is necessary because of a legal obligation that applies to you (other than a contractual obligation)...

mean that we're back to whether there is a contract between you and the PPC?

HO87

No. I'd suggest that if you have denied the debt and specifically that any debt exists (thereby calling into to question the existence of any contract and any obligation that might flow from that) and already told them that their continued unfounded demands will be viewed as harassment. In that case they are on notice that their claims are not accepted and that they must consider some other form of remedy.

All they can do is to challenge you s.10 notice. That will cost them and if it transpires that they are pursuing the RK, for example, and have failed to comply with POFA Schedule 4 then their case is going to look slightly fragile.

There is no "golden bullet" and you may well have to put up or shut up.