Premier Parking Solutions PCN

Beewi

Hi Bessie,

I don't suppose that the first letter of your car registration is the letter S?

Beewi

Umkomaas

Beewi wrote: »

Hi Bessie,

I don't suppose that the first letter of your car registration is the letter S?

Beewi

If you don't get a reply here from Bessie, try sending her a PM, she should then get an email informing that you're trying to contact.

bessieboots

Hi Beewi

No, my registration begins with a W. I have tried communicating with these despicable people but it is very clear they are only interested in getting their money and have no interest in the fact that I paid for my ticket even though I still have it and can prove I paid. My view is that they are negligent and should correlate the information from the automated number plate system with their ticket machine or they should have someone actually looking at the ticket in the windscreen of the car. However, this is not in their interests and they can get away it so - end of story as far as they are concerned. I do not have the time, energy or heart to pursue it. The best thing we can do is:
1. Write to Sarah Woolaston, MP
2. Talk to everyone in Totnes about it and warn them about PPS ticket machines - ie tell everyone your story ...
3. Write to Watchdog, contact Totnes Times (could be get a campaign together?) etc. Publicity is what PPS really doesn't want. Hit them where it hurts!

The only hope I have is that they run out of people using the car park. If everyone knows how dodgy it is to use, then hopefully it will be blacklisted by the locals. It is fairly remote and visitors don't generally get to find it.

Bessieboots

bessieboots

I also meant to add, don't forget to contact the landowners too to let them know just what you think of PPS ...

Coupon-mad

Best thing is not to pay it though.

pulpotim1960

Hi Beewi,
So sorry you lost your appeal. It's totally inconsistent of POPLA to refuse your appeal and uphold mine. In effect, you've been penalised for being honest and admitting to being the driver. Fortunately for me, I'd read this forum first and kept schtum about who was driving the car and got off on a technicality.


I've been back to the car park recently and, with my wife, very carefully bought a ticket. The fault is clearly with the machine, as the printed instructions tell the purchaser to enter their VRN. What happens then is that while you're concentrating on pressing the right letters and numbers on the keypad, unbeknown to you, after pressing the first letter of the VRN, an instruction telling you what to do appears in the display screen. So, the first letter you press merely activates the idle machine - but is not registered. As soon as you key in the second letter, the instruction disappears from the display screen and the second letter appears as the first letter on the printed ticket.


I know it's easy for me to say, but I urge you not to pay this fine. Let the b******s take you to the small claims court (which I very much doubt they will). I will happily appear as your witness and say the same thing happened to me. Additionally, it would be simple enough to record a short video on a smart phone which will clearly shows what I've outlined above and how the mistake is made. So, just to clarify, it's not a fault with any one letter, it's that users don't realise that the first letter of their VRN hasn't been entered into the machine. Personally, I think we could make a class action lawsuit against PPS for attempting (and succeeding in many cases) to extract money from people by installing equipment that deliberately trips up honest fee paying customers. PPS are nothing short of criminals in my book.


bessieboots - if you're reading this - needless to say, I suspect the same thing applies to you.
All the best to you both!

Coupon-mad

pulpotim1960 wrote: »

Hi Beewi,
So sorry you lost your appeal. It's totally inconsistent of POPLA to refuse your appeal and uphold mine. In effect, you've been penalised for being honest and admitting to being the driver. Fortunately for me, I'd read this forum first and kept schtum about who was driving the car and got off on a technicality.

I've been back to the car park recently and, with my wife, very carefully bought a ticket. The fault is clearly with the machine, as the printed instructions tell the purchaser to enter their VRN. What happens then is that while you're concentrating on pressing the right letters and numbers on the keypad, unbeknown to you, after pressing the first letter of the VRN, an instruction telling you what to do appears in the display screen. So, the first letter you press merely activates the idle machine - but is not registered. As soon as you key in the second letter, the instruction disappears from the display screen and the second letter appears as the first letter on the printed ticket.


I know it's easy for me to say, but I urge you not to pay this fine. Let the b******s take you to the small claims court (which I very much doubt they will). I will happily appear as your witness and say the same thing happened to me. Additionally, it would be simple enough to record a short video on a smart phone which will clearly shows what I've outlined above and how the mistake is made. So, just to clarify, it's not a fault with any one letter, it's that users don't realise that the first letter of their VRN hasn't been entered into the machine. Personally, I think we could make a class action lawsuit against PPS for attempting (and succeeding in many cases) to extract money from people by installing equipment that deliberately trips up honest fee paying customers. PPS are nothing short of criminals in my book.

bessieboots - if you're reading this - needless to say, I suspect the same thing applies to you.
All the best to you both!

Wow, that's useful information pulpotim1960. And useful advice to record a short video as proof of the fault with this machine. I wonder if they use the same type at other car parks too? I suspect so as I have seen LOTS of PPS cases where the PCNs are issued due to just one digit being missed from a VRN.

Trouble is, the IPC won't care. Worth a complaint though, to the IPC and DVLA with a video of what occurs with this machine. Just to rattle the right cages. The IPC need more complaints to be copied into the DVLA.

But at court, a video like that is exactly the sort of evidence to assist a defendant.

Beewi

Thank you so much for your message Tim....what absolute low life criminals these people really are! I'm sure many of us have been caught out with this clever 'idle machine' trick.

CM, I haven't yet made my complaint to POPLA about the bad handling of my complaint but do you think there would still be any mileage in doing so or could I go straight to ISPA as you also suggested? Who are ISPA exactly, so I know i'm contacting the right organisation?!

I only ask, as I am running out of energy and patience with the whole thing and i'm loathed to spend more valuable time and effort (including yours!) putting together yet another potentially futile complaint. Whilst I have no intention of paying the fine (I have now received my first demand for payment from PPS), I really do not like it hanging over me.

Thanks for all of your help so far.

Beewi

PS. The case should still come under the BPA rather than IPC, as the PCN was issued before the change over. Would this not be the case now?

Coupon-mad

You can Google 'ISPA POPLA' to find them and what they do, or search the forum to find everyone else making similar complaints right now. I would always compain to POPLA first, for two reasons:

- it looks more reasonable when you then escalate the matter to ISPA

- POPLA must have to keep stats on complaint nubers - and BOY do they deserve them!