Do I have grounds to appeal - MET parking ticket

Laurendo

My local swimming pool is near a shopping centre. The swimming pool car park gives you 2.5 hours free parking. However if you are using the pool you can sign in on a machine with your registration and then there is no time limit on the car park. I took my baby swimming and signed in as normal. I was over 2.5 hours. I've now got a ticket.

I realised I stupidly put a number '0' in where my number plate is the letter 'o'. So I appealed internally saying I used the car park correctly but just made a typing mistake. They've written back saying yes they can see my registration with a number instead of a letter was put in, however as I put it in incorrectly my car is not covered and I have to pay, however they will drop it to £30 instead of £60 (or £100) if I pay within 14 days as a goodwill gesture. They gave info for POPLA.

It seems pernickety in the extreme. They acknowledge I used the car park correctly however are still charging me due to basically a typo. But I'm worried if I formally appeal it'll fail and I'll have to pay the full £100. Anyone know if they have a leg to stand on. I want to cry it's so unfair. What would I possibly gain from putting the reg in wrong? As my partner said I'm being charged for putting the wrong circle in!

The_Deep

You are entirely in the right here, a simple error, of the type everyone makes all the time, should not cost you a penny, let alone £100. If you did it in a council car park they would cancel immediately.

Write in the strongest terms to your MP, the swimming pool management (CEO if it is a council facility) , and your local paper and radio station. Create havoc.

Others will tell you how to get this cancelled using the law, but it is a long process and totally unnecessary imo, and they are creating a rod for their own backs.

If you do appeal to PoPLA, remember, they have lost nothing, and Beavis is totally irrelevant. GPEOL will win this easily.

Ralph-y

Hi Laurendo and welcome to the forum ......


as above you can get his killed off by complaining ...... firstly to the Pool Manager ..........


the forum advice is not to ignore such .... so in tandem with the complaints you need to appeal ...

its looks like you have received a POPLA code if so please con firm and check out its exipary date on the parking cowboys site (a more learned member will provide a link if yoo can not find it)

you all so need to look / read through the newbies thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4816822


please do not let this spoil your xmas .........

do you think a judge would deport you to the Antipodes

how much did they loose ?

please complain and look though the recent POPLA appeals for a version you can plagiaris then post it up for the forum elders to advise

have a merry xmas


and

good luck

Ralph

catfunt

http://www.parkingcowboys.co.uk/popla-code-checker/

Coupon-mad

But I'm worried if I formally appeal it'll fail and I'll have to pay the full £100.

You'll lose at POPLA if you just repeat the weak appeal you made at first. I assume you gave away the driver as well? Oh dear...

We can assist with a decent POPLA appeal but boy oh boy, do people make life difficult when they say who was driving. Puts you on the back foot for POPLA.

We are NOT saying to pay this.

You need to read example POPLA appeals and come back with your draft. See post #3 of the NEWBIES sticky thread.

Laurendo

Thanks for the replies. I will read through and draft an appeal, and then post it here.

Such a chore. My baby is 5 months old I don't have time for such stupid stuff. What an idiot putting a number instead of a letter.

Is it a really weak argument then? It seems ridiculous that they agree I put the wrong registration in but this doesn't change it? They've made no loss as I would have had unlimited time in the car park anyway.

salmosalaris

I will write your POPLA appeal if you send me a pm but as CM says we've wasted some ammo . Mind you it would be perverse if POPLA ruled against you when it is clear you paid . This industry is rotten to the core i'm afraid .
Meanwhile get onto whoever contracted with MET to get it cancelled

Coupon-mad

You can trust salmosalaris. Send him a private message, that's a very good offer from him to write it for you.

Sadly (you weren't to know, you were just being honest) it was a weak way to appeal and would lose at POPLA if used alone, because the PPC would just say that the t&cs were breached, regardless. But salmosalaris knows other arguments and POPLA have a duty to consider fairness in any contract too.

Also the BPA Code of Practice insists on PPCs checking PCNs to make sure they are 'appropriate' to enforce BEFORE one is issued and it would have been very simple for the PPC to spot your payment. So IMHO it was not 'appropriate' in all good faith, to even issue the PCN.

There's more than that though so send a private message, by clicking on salmosalaris' username.

Laurendo

Thank you. I'm genuinely overwhelmed by the offer. I was feeling so stressed last night I wanted to just pay it. I'd usually get angry etc but I'm so very tired at the moment. Which is probably why I made the mistake in the first place!

I'll write to the manager today and also to the ceo at the council and the exec in charge of sports etc as it's a council facility (run by a private company).

I've messaged salmosalaris (twice by mistake I think - doh just endless mistakes over here) so we'll see what happens. This forum is amazing, people even taking the time to reply let alone offering to help.

The_Deep

No Madam you are not an idiot, I constantly confuse my "o" s with my "0"s, and I am not an idiot. It is idiocy on the part of this disreputable moner grabbing company to think that they can profit from it.

If it is too much bother, blank them. The worst they can do is take you to the County Court, which is just people sitting at a table and discussing the case, nothing like that pompous !!! Rhinder, but they are unlikely to do that as Judges are not stupid, and can come down on them like a ton of bricks if they think they are wasting their time. .

dggar

Presumably MET parking will have had to correct the error of putting "0" instead of "o" when they made their enquiry to the DVLA for keeper details.