A little advice would be appreciated

fordcortina

Hi moneysavers,

I believe that I'm "on top of" a parking charge notice situation, but having followed the forum guidance as much as possible, have been unable to find an answer to one question, so any advice anyone can offer would be hugely appreciated.

In a nutshell... I received a charge notice from G24 (the store concerned was B&M). How it is written seems to comply with the legal requirements, but believing it to be wrongly issued for several reasons, I then moved on to "stage 2" and visited the store manager.

He was very busy, but agreed with the points I made and asked if I can call back to see him (I will be seeing him later today). He said that he will get it sorted/cancelled from "their end", so to speak.

So... here's my question. Whilst I'm confident of using the advice and templates on this forum to proceed/fight the charge notice if necessary... would it be wise... or stupid... to simply trust the manager, or should I write directly to G24 also?

I obviously don't want to "shoot myself in the foot" and lose support of the manager, but equally, don't want to time-bar myself in any way from appealing or obtaining a POPLA code etc.

(For reference only, the "offence" allegedly took place on 20th Aug. The issue date on the notice was 6 days after the alleged offence... and I received the notice yesterday...12 days after the ANPR cameras recorded my details).

Many thanks for any guidance anyone can offer... it will be most appreciated.

Umkomaas

Sorry, but you won't be getting a POPLA code as G24 are no longer members of the BPA; they are now part of the IPC debacle, where their appeals service, the IAS, is so heavily stacked against the motorist that your chance of winning is less than 20% (compared to greater than 90% with POPLA with a forum assisted appeal).

Concentrate on that manager!

ManxRed

Get him to confirm in writing that he wishes for G24 to cancel the charge. That'll be a big bullet in your gun!

Ilona

Yes, stick with the manager. A lot of these cases can be solved by contacting the manager first. No need to go in with all guns blazing, be reasonable, say it's not very nice to treat your customers in this way, be prepared to grovel, keep any receipts to show you have shopped in the store, and get him to confirm in writing that he will get it cancelled.

It happened to me at Aldi, the manager was a good one, he did as he said he would. You will get more demands from the parking company, then you will get the letter saying there is no charge to pay, that's if the manager has done what he said he would.

Ilona

Fruitcake

Be polite but firm with the manager, but I would advise appealing to the PPC anyway using the template in the NEWBIES thread just in case the manager isn't successful. Belt and braces, and don't miss the appeal deadline.

The_Deep

Appeal to the I.A.S., a refusal from them is a sure-fire way of keeping this out of court.

Hot_Bring

Personally I wouldn't waste any time or effort with G24. Bunch of criminals who have never taken a 'parker' to court. Just ignore them and their equally pathetic debt collectors.

fordcortina

Hi again... and many thanks to all who replied. Just to update you, I saw the store manager, showed him receipts, left full details of the parking charge and he "promised" he'd contact G24 straight away to inform them not to proceed. He added that if I have further problems, to go and see him (from what I've read on here about G24, I'm guessing this is likely!).

I didn't dare risk asking him to put what he said in writing (as suggested earlier in the thread), as I felt it might alienate him and possibly even lose his support... though maybe I'm just a coward!

Anyway, I'll update the thread, as anything develops... and thanks again to everyone (if anyone has further incite, feel free to offer your thoughts).

Ilona

Yes, thanks for keeping us updated. It sounds as if he might be genuine. If you made a note of his name, and he doesn't get it sorted you could contact head office. The waiting time is the worst, not knowing what is happening. I didn't even open my second and third letters because I knew it would stress me out. After a quiet period when nothing happened I opened the third letter and there it was, the parking company writing to say there were no charges. It was a relief.
Ilona

PS. I'm a Ford gal. Had Cortinas, Escorts, and now a Focus, all estates. Love 'em

fordcortina

Ilona wrote: »

Yes, thanks for keeping us updated. It sounds as if he might be genuine. If you made a note of his name, and he doesn't get it sorted you could contact head office. The waiting time is the worst, not knowing what is happening. I didn't even open my second and third letters because I knew it would stress me out. After a quiet period when nothing happened I opened the third letter and there it was, the parking company writing to say there were no charges. It was a relief.
Ilona

PS. I'm a Ford gal. Had Cortinas, Escorts, and now a Focus, all estates. Love 'em

Hi again Ilona,

Thanks again for the input. You're right, it is worrying, whilst waiting/hoping for good news.

Re: cars... I can't stand Fords myself... only kidding (fairly obviously!). I love my Fords... and motorbikes.

As my user name suggests, I started with Cortinas... Capris... an XR4i... a Ford Probe (still have it)... and Mondeos. I've also had/have estates, but moved over to "the Dark Side" (Vauxhalls... but only because they were cheap!).

FC

fordcortina

Hi everyone,

Just to let anyone who is vaguely interested know, the store manager was true to his word and I have received a letter from G24 themselves, the main/important part stating:

"Further to your dispute regarding the above Contractual Parking Charge Notice, we would like to confirm that this has been waived.
No further action is required by you."

I have already been back to thank the manager (but parked "down the road"... just in case! )

A sincere thank you also, to all who offered advice on the forum... and to everyone in general... keep on fighting these unjust charges!

FC