Smart parking

Seamonkey65

Hi there, I'm looking for some advice please.
We parked in a car park for a visitor attraction run by smart parking A few weeks ago and received a penalty notice this morning. The notice does not say why we have received a fine.

The car park required you to enter your registration number on entry into a machine and gave you the option to pay before you left. We added on a couple of hours to make sure we had enough time as we had read reviews on trip advisor of customers being caught out, so I am certain we paid for enough time. However we didn't keep the receipt for parking so have no proof. There was no option to pay by card so we don't have bank evidence of payment either.

Is it worth appealing? We have no evidence, but it seems unfair that the burden of proof is on us.
If we do appeal but fail will we end up paying the increased amount of £100 rather than £60?
I rang up the visitor attraction this afternoon and they couldn't care less so they won't help. Strange that they don't understand that their reputation is being damaged by their contractor!

Thanks

Redx

Seamonkey65 wrote: »

Hi there, I'm looking for some advice please.
We parked in a car park for a visitor attraction run by smart parking A few weeks ago and received a penalty notice this morning. The notice does not say why we have received a fine.

its not a fine

its not a penalty either

its a pcn , Parking Charge Notice , which is actually a speculative invoice

Seamonkey65 wrote: »

The car park required you to enter your registration number on entry into a machine and gave you the option to pay before you left. We added on a couple of hours to make sure we had enough time as we had read reviews on trip advisor of customers being caught out, so I am certain we paid for enough time. However we didn't keep the receipt for parking so have no proof. There was no option to pay by card so we don't have bank evidence of payment either.

Is it worth appealing? We have no evidence, but it seems unfair that the burden of proof is on us.
If we do appeal but fail will we end up paying the increased amount of £100 rather than £60?
I rang up the visitor attraction this afternoon and they couldn't care less so they won't help. Strange that they don't understand that their reputation is being damaged by their contractor!

Thanks

yes you should appeal it, the NEWBIES sticky thread tells you why, plus has a handy template letter to use

in future, keep all payment tickets for 12 months or more, its your proof of contract, your receipt , it could be needed to prove you paid, or in court, so never throw them away, not for say 1 to 2 years or so

the grounds for appeal are

no contract
NTK not compliant with POFA 2012
poor signage
not a gpeol
the payment was paid (perhaps an incorrect vrn was out into the machine ? ie:- user error ?)

but use the template letter for the initial appeal, also stating that THE DRIVER paid more money than was required for parking on the day, that they should check the machine for an incorrect VRN , a mistake

there is no compulsion to pay a penny, not unless a court says so

Grimble

Has this attraction got a facebook page? They will not like comments about parking on there.

Seamonkey65

Thanks guys. So if we appeal but end up losing would we be liable for the initial discounted amount or the full
Amount?

There is a Facebook page but they keep deleting comments about parking!
They are responding to trip advisor reviews but only to say that their parking charges are reasonable, but they are missing the point slightly. I don't think anyone is arguing that £2-3 is unreasonable for parking, but if you add on a £60 pcn it definitely is!

bazster

Name and shame!

atilla

Reputation being damaged?
:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Bunch of jokers this lot.

Just follow the advice already proffered and you'll be fine.
They will make you jump through a few hoops but it will cost THEM £27 + vat for the privilege. It would be rude not to at that price.

Seamonkey65

Waterworld in stoke

Edna_Basher

I bet Smart’s Notice to Keeper just refers to "Waterworld". However, there are a few Waterworlds scattered around the UK (be they leisure parks or garden centres) and so the NtK is not sufficiently clear in identifying the land on which this alleged incident took place.

More importantly, I expect that the NtK will make no reference to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (POFA). This would mean that Smart were not even bothering to try to hold the keeper liable and are limiting the scope of their claim only to the driver.

The NtK’s non-compliance with POFA will be a certain winning appeal point – so long as the appeal is made by the keeper and so long as the driver is not identified at any stage (including on this thread).

Seamonkey65

thanks for the advice so far. I've been working my way through the advice n the newbies threat and have a couple of questions.


I think they have contravened para 9 of POFA because they haven't fulfilled the following criteria. They haven't told us whether the issue is that we didn't pay at all or whether we under paid. It doesn't give an amount we underpaid by if it believes we did underpay. If I'm right and they haven't fulfilled this criteria, do I add the detail into the template parking letter under item d)?:


specify the total amount of those parking charges that are unpaid, as at a time which is—
(i)specified in the notice; and
(ii)no later than the end of the day before the day on which the notice is either sent by post or, as the case may be, handed to or left at a current address for service for the keeper (see sub-paragraph (4));


I'm also worried about the timescales. We are due to go on holiday for three weeks on Friday with no access to our post. if we submit an appeal before we go away, will we miss the timeframe for a POPLA appeal or will it be a massive rush when we get back?


thanks

Seamonkey65

also, sorry Edna - you are right that they just refer to 'waterworld', but they do have photos of the car entering and leaving so doesn't that prove the car was there? or do they have to state specifically.
Again if this is another argument we can use, can you suggest some wording and where we should slot this into the template?
thanks

atilla

Seamonkey65 wrote: »

I'm also worried about the timescales. We are due to go on holiday for three weeks on Friday with no access to our post. if we submit an appeal before we go away, will we miss the timeframe for a POPLA appeal or will it be a massive rush when we get back?


thanks

Lap of the Gods with that one.
Sometimes they just ignore an appeal - as in never ever reply or action it.
Sometimes they take around three weeks to cobble together a make believe accurate refusal and issue a popla code, then now and again you get a reply back almost return of post.

Which ever it is, you will have time submit an appeal to popla.