Northern Parking Services continuing letters despite a cheque

Inwitari

Hello!

Just wondered if I could get your opinions/help as I'm beginning to feel quite intimidated by continuing letters from Northern Parking Services.

I got a parking ticket on a Sunday in February 2016, one side of a car park was free and the other side was pay and display, however, there was a bit of a building site between one side of the pay car park and the other, so the larger signs were obscured. Neither me, nor my passenger noticed that it was pay and display (we were so annoyed as the charge on a Sunday was only £3 for all day parking - something we definitely would have paid!). I got a notice asking for £60 and I used one of the template letters from this site to appeal to the company, asking the questions about who they were operating on behalf of etc.

I got the usual response to the appeal via email, no answers to any of the questions I had asked in the letter. The email said in the main body:

"Please find important correspondence attached regarding your Parking Charge Notice.
DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your appeal, you cannot appeal
again. You can make a complaint, details on how to do this are detailed at
[they had a website here, but as a new user I can't post links]"

There was also a PDF letter attached demanding the £60 payment and stating that my appeal had been rejected. At the time I was going through a pretty bad patch in my personal life so I felt it was easier to pay the £60 than fight with them (and besides, they had stated I could not appeal again) so I sent them the £60 in the post via recorded delivery (all other payment options had additional fees attached to them).

A little later I started getting letters demanding £100. I sent them an email telling them I had paid in good time and that the cheque was signed for. They asked for proof so I sent them a screenshot of the signature, date and time that the letter was received from the Royal Mail website.

Then I started getting emails asking me to prove that the cheque was cashed. I sent them another email saying that I had done was I was supposed to do - the payment was sent in good time, I could not be liable for the cheque being cashed as that was their responsibility. They started emailing demanding that I go to the bank and ask for proof that the cheque was cashed and send it to them. This was a few weeks ago, and to be honest, I hadn't got round to replying yet.

So yesterday I got a letter from "Hamilton Financial Management" demanding £172 on behalf of their "client". Funnily enough, sending a payment by post is "not available at this time". That means that if I was to pay I would have to give my details online or over the phone to this company, which I am not comfortable with. The website it gives to go to for "further information" comes up with a page saying that a new website is coming soon - no links or anything to give any further information. When I looked up the company online I saw that the 2 directors of Northern Parking Services are also the only 2 directors of Hamilton Financial Management...

Basically, what do people think? If they do take me to court I think I have a pretty sound argument for what has happened - I did pay the parking charge, even though I felt it was unfair, and it looks like they have lost the cheque but want me to do all the legwork/give them my bank details via their website or on the phone, (which I am not comfortable with as if they can lose a cheque, they could also lose my personal details), but I'm worried about what they might come back with and the amount of harassment I'll have to put up with in the meantime!

System

"Hamilton Financial Management" are the same bunch of to**ers. Keep your cheque and your letter. If they attempt court, they will look like the to**ers they are.

Known to winge a lot.

Castle

Firstly; have you checked with your bank to see if it has been cashed.

Herzlos

Castle wrote: »

Firstly; have you checked with your bank to see if it has been cashed.

And if not, get the bank to cancel it. There's no reason you should be paying these scammers. Then just ignore them up until they try court (if they bother to do so).

Castle

Herzlos wrote: »

And if not, get the bank to cancel it. There's no reason you should be paying these scammers. Then just ignore them up until they try court (if they bother to do so).

Agreed; and if they tried court you can honestly state that you offered £60 in settlement and they rejected it.

Inwitari

I haven't been able to get to my bank to ask for any proof of cashing, but it hasn't come up on my online banking. I don't trust this company to not have the cheque though, so I would have to go to the bank to cancel the one that's already been sent before sending another one in case they cashed 2 cheques at the same time. I work 9-5 and am away most weekends, so it could take a few weeks for me to even get to the bank to cancel it, then I would have to pay for another round of recorded delivery, and with all the time taken to sort this out I would really begrudge paying the full £60.

Herzlos

Don't bother sending them another one, they are lying to you in order to get you to pay them more. You'll beat them so badly in court you'll feel guilty about it, and pay them nothing.

You should be able to cancel the current "live" one over the phone. As said, you offered to settle for £60 and they rejected it, so you cancelled the cheque to prevent them trying to cash it again later.

Fruitcake

Inwitari wrote: »

I haven't been able to get to my bank to ask for any proof of cashing, but it hasn't come up on my online banking. I don't trust this company to not have the cheque though, so I would have to go to the bank to cancel the one that's already been sent before sending another one in case they cashed 2 cheques at the same time. I work 9-5 and am away most weekends, so it could take a few weeks for me to even get to the bank to cancel it, then I would have to pay for another round of recorded delivery, and with all the time taken to sort this out I would really begrudge paying the full £60.

NO!

You cancel the original cheque and then sit on your hands. Do not pay them at all. They are scammers.

If they try court, your defence is that you offered payment and sent them a cheque. Here is the proof your Honour. Here is proof of the harassment you received from them your Honour.

Herzlos

You can also then go into the multitude of reasons you didn't owe them any money in the first place. With the exception of the £3 all day parking, which is probably due to the car park owners directly and not these agents.

SecondRow

I sent them the £60 in the post via recorded delivery

Is that not good service then? If you were being summoned for a genuine motoring offence and it was sent by post, the court only needs to be satisfied that good service has taken place for them to proceed. You have that in spades, sit tight and laugh at them in court if they dared try to take you there.