Meteor PCN at Three Bridges Railway Station

garethuk1981

Guys,

Got one yesterday from Meteor for basically parking outside a parking bay area. To be honest i should have known, but as i was in a rush, i saw a car parked in the opposite direction and it looked i was parking opposite to a legitimate parked car :-( - However when returning later I found parking charge notices on both mine and his/hers. I previously paid an hour before travelling for my space at this car park, so they received the money for the day parking in advance to me leaving and noticing that there was no legitimate parking bays available (except for the one i thought i was parking in, which turned out not to be).

Anyway, i sent them this appeal email today. what do you think my chances are? / next actions?

For some reason it wont let me upload the scanned image of the parking ticket (asks for a URL, rather than an image location on my laptop).

Meteor Parking Ltd – PCN number ******* - Reg: ********

I have received your parking 'invoice' impersonating a parking ticket. I decline your invitation to pay or name the driver, neither of which are required of me as the keeper of the vehicle. This is my appeal and all liability to your company is denied on the following basis:

I. The amount is neither a genuine tariff/fee for parking, nor is it based upon any genuine pre-estimate of loss to your company or the landowner.

II. You’re not the landowner and do not have the standing to offer contracts to drivers nor to bring a claim in your own right.

III. Your signage was not sufficiently prominent nor clearly worded and consideration did not flow from both parties, so there was no contract formed. This is a non-negotiated and totally unexpected third party 'charge' foisted upon legitimate motorists who are not your customers, therefore it is required to beso prominent that it must have been seen/accepted by the driver. No reasonable person would have accepted such onerous parking terms and I contend the extortionate charge was not 'drawn to his attention in the most explicit way' (Lord Denning, Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking Ltd [1971] 2 QB 163, Court of Appeal): 'The customer is bound by those terms as long as they are sufficiently brought to his notice beforehand, but not otherwise. In {ticket cases of former times} the issue...was regarded as an offer by the company. That theory was, of course, a fiction. No customer in a thousand ever read the conditions. In order to give sufficient notice, it would need to be printed in red ink with red hand pointing to it - or something equally startling.'

As you have failed to create any enforceable contract I suggest that you cancel this unjustified 'ticket’. If not, under your Trade Body's current Code of Practice you must issue a rejection letter which, in order to answer my appeal, must include:

1. The legal basis of your charge, which is not clear (i.e. breach, trespass or contractual fee?). As keeper, I cannot be expected to guess the basis of your allegation.

(i) if alleging breach of contract, please supply a breakdown of your alleged 'loss' and state the intention of your enforcement (i.e. deterrent or revenue?).

(ii) if alleging trespass, enclose evidence of the perpetrator, proof of the liquidated damages alleged and the calculation of this sum by the landholder.

(iii) if alleging 'contractual fee' I request a VAT invoice by return and your explanation of how you can allow drivers to park 'in breach' for a fee when your client originally contracted you in order to disallow and deter - not allow and profit from - unauthorized parking.

I contend this charge is merely a penalty which is not recoverable in contract law (as found by Mr Recorder Gibson QC in the case of Civil Enforcement vMcCafferty 3YK50188 (AP476) 21/2/2014 Appeal). There is clearly no commercial justification for this punitive charge and no case law to support it.

2. Proof of your contracts to drivers at this site and to bring a claim in your own right for this particular contravention. If you are not the landowner, I will need to see a copy of your contract, showing the restrictions, the charges, the dates and terms of business including any payments between yourself and your client and the definition of your status as agents or contractors and your assigned rights (if any). Such detail is necessary for me to make an informed decision. Failure to divulge your landowner contract (or heavily redacting it) will be deemed as withholding pertinent information and, of course, I will require it to be shown at independent appeal stage anyway. A witness statement will not suffice, nor a site agreement with a managing agent or other party who is not the landowner.

3. Your explanation of the consideration that you believe flowed from the driver, and from yourselves. Consideration from both sides is required for a contract.

4. A copy of the signage sitemap and close-up pictures of the signs in situ at the time, taken at comparable time of day in similar light conditions.

5. The means to make an appeal to POPLA. This must not be withheld or delayed, which would be a breach of the Code of Practice.

If you fail to simply cancel the charge or supply the means to independent appeal in your first reply you will also be reported to BPA and the DVLA. Certificate of posting will be obtained for all written communications for this appeal and complaint and I intend to claim my costs when I prevail.

Yours sincerely

G Evans.

garethuk1981

By the way, this went out through my work email address. No living address was provided. Although my signature has a business address on it :-\

alrobert71

Hi Gareth,

Just wondering how you got on with your appeal? I'm facing a similar situation.

Cheers,
Andy.

fuziduck

alrobert71 wrote: »

Hi Gareth,

Just wondering how you got on with your appeal? I'm facing a similar situation.

Cheers,
Andy.

Have a look at my previous posts. I successfully beat Meteor for the same 'offence' at Dorking station. I had also bought the parking ticket the previous day, but this is irrelevant.


Good Luck