Directions Questionnaire

Snellosaurus

Hello all,

After research and some advice on here (thank you, again, for that), I submitted a defence through MCOL. Gladstones have now sent out a letter stating that they are acting for the claimant and have notified the court of the client's intention to proceed.

They have sent me their client's completed directions questionnaire, "which will be filed with the court upon their request".

They are requesting 'special direction' that the hearing be dealt with on papers because it is straightforward and costs to attend would be disproportionate. They hope I agree. (I know from my research that I disagree!) They have said that if I decline an oral hearing, they request that the hearing takes place in the Claimant's home court (again, I know I can disagree with this).

The things I am hoping you may be able to help me with are:

I have no directions questionnaire! I cannot find any information about whether / when I will get one.
With no directions questionnaire and no time scale or instructions from the court, I do not know how I object to the hearing based on court papers, or any future hearing taking place at their home court.

Any further tips would be marvelous!

HO87

Don't panic - that is what this letter from Gladstones is intended to provoke. And its a nonsense. Your copy of the N180 questionnaire will be sent to you shortly by MCOL and it will be your choice of court location that will determine where any hearing takes place.

Their application for a hearing "on the papers" is an attempt to minimise their expense and there is no reason why you should accept that. Its also an attempt to ensure that their witnesses never have to give evidence - so they can never be "tested". They know that a paper hearing cannot go ahead unless you agree and you are under no pressure to do so.

Coupon-mad

As HO87 said, this is a well known Gladstones ploy. The case will also be heard at your local court, not their client's choice!

Google search 'straightforward papers Gladstones' and examples of how to rebut this when returning your DQ will be shown in your results (including posts from here, pepipoo forum and the Parking Prankster's blog).

Snellosaurus

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

I have been sent a form N180 (small claims track) form in the post, so I can now fill that out. However, I am still struggling to find any information about how to tackle it best. I tried searching "straightforwards papers Gladstones" as you suggested, Coupon-mad, but it didn't come up with much. One thing I found on Parking Prankster's website seemed to have a suggested template to argue the case for it being an oral hearing rather than the papers alone, but I'm not sure how to use this.

The queries I have are:
Do I accept that it is appropriate for the Small Claims Court?

How do I refuse the hearing on papers alone?

Do I justify my request for the hearing to be in my home court simply by saying that it is my home court?

Can I have my spouse as a witness? They were on their way to the car I was sat in when it was issued. They were equally bemused that a ticket was issued and also thought that I had pulled over on a public highway rather than private land. If not, is there any capacity that they can be there with me should a day in court be set?

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Is anyone able to signpost me to where I can find answers to these questions (or perhaps answer some of them directly)? Or any other tips on this stage of the process?

Cheers.

Coupon-mad

I tried searching "straightforward papers Gladstones" as you suggested, Coupon-mad, but it didn't come up with much. One thing I found on Parking Prankster's website seemed to have a suggested template to argue the case for it being an oral hearing rather than the papers alone, but I'm not sure how to use this.

Yes that's what you do, when you complete and return your DQ to the court and Gladstones.

Read post #27 here by Gan on pepipoo:

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=107781&st=20

That's how to respond with your DQ, to ensure Gladstones 'suggestion' is binned. Happens all the time, they never get away with it when faced with a forum-supported defendant.

Do I justify my request for the hearing to be in my home court simply by saying that it is my home court?

Yes - you don't actually need to justify it...the correct court IS your court as you are the individual and they are a company.

Can I have my spouse as a witness? They were on their way to the car I was sat in when it was issued. They were equally bemused that a ticket was issued and also thought that I had pulled over on a public highway rather than private land. If not, is there any capacity that they can be there with me should a day in court be set?

Yes and yes, your spouse can be a witness and should then accompany you as that witness.

Snellosaurus

Thank you for your pointers, Coupon-mad. You and others on this forum have been fantastically helpful!