SCS Law Taking me to County Court for unpaid PCNs

mustoofa

Hello,
Got a letter from County Court Business Center in Northampton for a Claim. Dated 27th September 2016. Got 14 days to respond.
Claimant is SCS law in Canary Wharf
Amount Claimed. 480 + Costs = 565.
I have never declared the driver or responded to their letters in any way. They got my address from DVLA.
All PCN's are on private land owned by 2 parties.
They are claiming for 3 tickets.
1. Parked on a double yellow line in an industrial estate.
2 and 3. Parked in a parking place without displaying a valid permit.
1 was a genuine 'mistake' because I could not see the parking notice as it was covered by a trailer who was unloading stuff in the same line. (Yeah those trailers park on those double yellow lines too to unload !) And There are loads of white vans who occupy those double yellow lines all the time. But those guys never get a ticket !
2 and 3 The overzealous Parking attendants could not see clearly where i was parked. the 2 car parks are close to each other, without any major distinction between them as they share the same piece of land.
I am attaching a dropbox link to the photos of the road and the signs.
Since im a newbie, it won't let me post urls. tiny url slash hbqvs37
I really need your help in disputing and defending against this claim.
All your help is really appreciated.

Coupon-mad

Photos:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j2g17t192zu245f/AAAc2yiI83jbrlkNeQJgwMXIa/Parking_Pictures?dl=0

Edit your first post to remove the phrase after 'The overzealous Parking attendants could not see that...'

They are claiming for 3 tickets.

Under the POFA, 3 x charges being claimed from a keeper is capped at £300 (if they were £100 a pop) plus court fees & interest of maybe £75. Nothing more.

Acknowledge the Service of the claim online creating a Government Gateway account (keep a note or send yourself an email with a screenshot of the code that gets generated).

Read the section called 'Small Claim?' in the NEWBIES sticky thread, especially the second link under that heading which gives you bargepole's summary of how to do what & when, and which boxes to tick on the court paperwork.

Then you can look at other UKPC defence cases by searching for those two words. We have won some for much more than the sum in question here, four figure claims have been won and obscured signage and doubt or ambiguity about the restrictions on either side of the road (if UKPC can only ticket on one side) is your best point to lead with; anything about the signs/lack of 'agreement on the charge' (which is a main issue which ensured that ParkingEye won v Beavis).

The signs are illegible, show no readable 'parking charge' and make no offer to park so the driver cannot possibly have 'agreed to a contract'.

Did you receive any Notice to Keeper letters at all or did you appeal the PCNs and so UKPC forgot to even send any NTKs?

mustoofa

Cheers Coupon-mad. I have never appealed the PCN's. I believe i did get NTK's at some point this year.
I will go through the threads and posts you mentioned.

Coupon-mad

Indeed, you may as well fight it because - even if you lose - you can't be liable for more than the £sum on the NTK (plus court fees/interest but no other random bolted on additional costs). So even a loss at a hearing means you'd pay less and no CCJ or credit black mark occurs if a person pays when directed to by a Judge.

mustoofa

So just a quick update and a Question.
I submitted my defence with a counterclaim (for wages that i will lose for attending court).
Court have given a hearing date in February.

The letter from court says I have to share all evidences like photographs etc with the Court AND all Parties involved 15 days before the hearing date.
I wanted to confirm of I should be posting all evidences to SCS law too ? wouldn't that undermine my case ?

Quentin

Yes you send copies to court and the claimant.


The claimant will have to do the same.

Coupon-mad

with a counterclaim (for wages that i will lose for attending court).

That's not a valid counterclaim, that's simple something you cover with a single sheet 'costs schedule' you take with you on the day. Discontinue your counterclaim when sending your Witness Statement and documents to the court and to SCS law. You have wasted £25 in a counterclaim fee, which is a shame.

The letter from court says I have to share all evidences like photographs etc with the Court AND all Parties involved 15 days before the hearing date.
I wanted to confirm of I should be posting all evidences to SCS law too ?

Yes that is normal.

Since you started your thread, I have added these links & advice to the NEWBIES thread:

IMPORTANT - KNOW WHAT YOU MUST DO AND BY WHEN!

Here's a summary from bargepole of what happens when, what you MUST do in time, re the paperwork & deadlines:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5546325

Do not think putting in the defence is your only job. Once allocated to your local court, you will be given a clear date by which YOU MUST file the evidence ('exhibits') and any Witness Statement (i.e. yours, as bargepole says in the above link!).

Here is a witness statement written from a registered keeper who was not driving and you can see it is paragraph-numbered throughout and it references numbered exhibits, creating an organised argument with illustrations/evidence:

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=106959&st=40&p=1225247&#entry1 225247

Here in post #9 is IamEmanresu from here (posting as emanresu on pepipoo) explaining witness statements and skeleton arguments:

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=106957&st=0&p=1239147&#entry12 39147

Here is a thread showing a Witness Statement AND a summary of his day in court where AB Express won at their hearing v VCS:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5070951&page=4

Please read the above. You need to know what is needed as a Witness Statement and the documents you intend to rely on.

mustoofa

Compiled a Witness Statement --- wanted to run it past you -- Tried to hide Personally identifiable information.

To,
Deputy District Judge Wheeler,
Country Court, Slough

Subject : Witness Statement of Defendant for Claim *****

Dear Judge Wheeler,

I, *****, of *****, *****, ***** am the defendant for claim ***** raised by claimant UKPC, represented by SCS Law

Paragraphs relevant to and central to ALL ‘PCNS’ and the whole claim in General.

1) The facts in this statement come from my Personal Knowledge. where they are not within my own knowledge, they are true to the best of my information and belief.

2) I am not liable to the Claimant for the sum claimed, or any amount at all and this is my Witness Statement in support of my defence as already filed.

3) I assert that I am the registered keeper of the vehicle in question in this case.

4) Please confirm that the Claimant can demonstrate a clear chain of authority from the landowner either by way of a written authority contract, deed or lease.
That this/these document(s) is/are in the Claimants possession or if not when they will be.
That such document(s) are available for inspection and if not when will they be
That copies of the document(s) can be provided and that the originals will be available at court.

5) The Claimant’s case that their claim is based on a contract and that such a contract was
conveyed by way of signs displayed at the location, then please confirm the following:
The Claimant is able to product a copy of all the various signs at the location indicating the various text point sizes together with a map or plan showing where that are deployed on the site.

6) Please confirm that the Claimant has in his possession an analysis of the costs incurred that form the additional charges included in the claim and:
That copies of such an analysis and other attendant documents upon which the analysis is based, are available for inspection and if no when will they be.
That the copies can be provided of the analysis and attendant documents and that all original documents upon which the Claimant might seek to reply on in this respect will be available at court.

7) The Claimant claims to have complied with the provisions of paragraph 4(2) of the Protections of Freedoms Act 2012.
a) The Claimant has not shown any proof that the PoFa 2012 has been complied with.
The KADOE (Keeper of Date and event) contract, section B2.2 specifies that each item of Data released by DVLA may only be used in relation to the event and purpose for which it is requested. The Claimant has used my details from the first request and has not provided any evidence which shows separate, multiple requests from the DVLA, this is a clear breach of PoFa.
b) The Claimant is asked to prove that my personal data has only been recorded on 1 database and not linked to any other database.This is not in line with section B2,4 of the KADOE
c) As per KADEO C2,1d, the Claimant has failed to communicate the details of complaint procedures by which a data subject can notify the DVLA and Information Commissioner if they believe their data has been used inappropriately.
d) The KADOE contract specifically states that the data can only be used to enforce the PCN using Schedule 4 of the PoFa. the Claimant is trying to claim liability against the keeper with no evidence to suggest that they were the driver. This is a clear case of misuse of Data.
e) The Claimant has not complied with The latest Revised Edition of the Data protection act 1998 Part 2, Section 10 by continuously reusing my Personal Data for sending multiple letters using the same data, without requesting it for every occasion it needed to use the data. This is case of a breach of the PoFA.



Paragraphs relevant to PCN ***** (Roadway Parking)

8) This Claim is invalid because of the following:
At the entrance of the estate, there is no signage informing the driver of any possible parking restrictions, thereby leading the driver to assume that there are no restrictions in place. This contravenes Section 18.2 of the BPA CoP
Inadequate and confusing signage forming no contract with drivers. The signs that the Claimant wants to rely upon are illegible, small and non-conspicuous. This contravenes Section 18.3 of the BPA CoP. Also please see Exhibit AM1 and Exhibit AM2. The signage is illegible and unreadable and has no means of forming a contract.
No sum payable on signage forming no contract with drivers. This contravenes Section 19.3 of the BPA CoP.
The Claimant allows the use of this roadway to other members of the public, who may be Claimant's own clients, but opportunistically only issues PCNs to members of public hoping to get some money out of them.
d.1) Exhibit AM3, AM4, AM5, AM6 are photos taken at different times of the days on different days. they eXhibits show a fleet of vans, trucks and trailers that are parked on the site in question, on Double Yellow lines, blocking a roadway. these vehicles are parked here many times of the day and they are removed prior to the Parking attendant visiting the site. all this is done in a controlled, collaborated fashion to catch out unsuspecting members of the public.
d.2) Exhibit AM7.1 shows a photo taken by the Claimants own photograph of my car which shows Vans parked on double yellow lines behind my car, blocking the same roadway.
UKPC, in the past have been accused of doctoring tickets, Convicted of Fraud in Hull Criminal Court and have previously been banned from obtaining details from DVLA between 18-09-2015 and 05-11-2015. I have a strong reason to believe that UKPC do not follow ethical and fair practices in running their business and hence every act they commit must be viewed with caution and scrutiny.
e) The Claimant's own photograph is shown in Exhibit AM7.2. It does not show my car actually
parked over a double yellow line. there does not appear to be any road markings on the actual place where my car is parked, Please see Exhibit AM8 and Exhibit AM4 showing no double yellow lines. Also Exhibit AM7 does not show any of the cars wheels touching the double yellow lines and none of the Claimants photos can prove this. This is very confusing for other road users who also Park on the same place. Please see exhibit AM9




Paragraphs relevant to PCN ***** and ***** (Parking in a Desginated Permit Holder Space )

9) Both PCNS are similar in nature and appear to have the same cause for the Claim and hence defended together.

10) The PCNS are invalid because of the following:
At the entrance of the estate, there is no signage informing the driver of any possible parking restrictions, thereby leading the driver to assume that there are no restrictions in place. This contravenes Section 18.2 of the BPA CoP
Inadequate and confusing signage forming no contract with drivers. The signs that the Claimant wants to rely upon are illegible, small and non-conspicuous. This contravenes Section 18.3 of the BPA CoP.
On the signage that does exist in the area where the alleged contravention took place, there is no mention of a sum payable on the signage and therefore constitutes to an unfair contract. This act alone violates point 18.3 and 18.4 of the BPA CoP
there are additional signs in the same vicinity which contradict the supposed restrictions and are ambiguous to the driver. Please refer Exhibit AM10
A similar PCN raised for the same site has been rejected by POPLA. A copy of the Adjudicators comments has been enclosed. This is a strong proof that the signs are inadequate, misleading and confusing.





===================================================
POPLA's decision for another PCN on the same site :

POPLA assessment and decision
22/11/2016
Verification Code
***** (tel:8662786370)
Decision Assessor Name
Assessor summary of operator case
Assessor summary of your case
Assessor supporting rational for decision
Successful ******
The operator’s case is that the appellant’s vehicle was parked on site without clearly displaying a valid permit.
The appellant’s case is that the signage displayed on site does not stipulate the amount of the Parking Charge Notice (PCN). The appellant feels there is no signage displayed on entrance to the car park. The appellant feels that the signage displayed throughout the car park is inadequate and confusing.
It is clear from the operator’s case file that the PCN was “issued to vehicle” on the date in question. There is no evidence to suggest that the operator transferred liability from the driver of the vehicle to the registered keeper of the vehicle. After considering the evidence, I am not satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to confirm that the appellant was in fact the driver of the vehicle on the date in question. As such, I must allow the appeal on the basis that the operator has failed to demonstrate that the appellant was the driver and therefore liable for the charge. I note the appellant has raised other issues as grounds for appeal, however, as I have decided to allow the appeal for this reason, I did not feel they required further consideration.

mustoofa

Just want to bring a closure to this. I have won the court case ! Thanks to everyone who helped !

It was pretty gruelling and I felt very intimidated and out of depth (well maybe i am too soft natured).

Points to Note :

What the judge did NOT consider :
1. PofA Schedule 4 breach Argument - This has to be taken up with the Information Commissioners office and does not give me any legal standing.
2. BPA code of practice not being followed.- like Entrance signs to Parking site missing. They said it is only a guideline and does not give me any legal standing.
3. KADOE contract breaches : That is between UKPC and DVLA and does not give me a legal standing.
4. Costs of loss of earnings is capped at 95 pounds per day.
5. You do not need a start and end time in the Parking attendants photograph and the Parkingeye Vs Beavis case was mentioned saying that it does amount to Parking charges.

Things that did help me :
a) Parking on double yellow lines on private land does not constitute a PCN contract unless signs are in place.
b) Multiple misleading signs - one allowing me to park (sign says - **** parking only) , which was in a bigger typefont and lower in height than the UKPC sign.
c) The contract between UKPC and landowner that had an area map which was very illegible. It turned out i was not parked within the 'marker pen' boundaries. - be sure to ask for a contract AND go through the area plan very carefully.

Other points : I was asked by the Judge to either Accept or Deny that i was the driver. I accepted.

I won 1xx pounds in costs.

All the best to other people who are going through this mess. I wish you good luck.

Coupon-mad

Fabulous! Do you fancy telling the Parking Prankster so he can Blog about it?

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/court-report-brentford-gladstones.html

http://www.parking-prankster.com/contact-me.html

Your name stays anonymous but we like to know the Claim number, court and Judge's name and a summary of what happened!

It turned out i was not parked within the 'marker pen' boundaries. - be sure to ask for a contract AND go through the area plan very carefully.

You appear to have classic grounds to sue UKPC and their principal, for DVLA data misuse and to report UKPC to the BPA for ticketing outside the contract boundary. If you are saying you were NOT parked within the enforcement area allowed then UKPC had no right to your DVLA data at all and you can claim 3 figure compensation.

Glad you got your costs! You did very well, we've seen a few UKPC ones with SCS Law lost on here, something of a lottery and they try hard...

:T

:j

mustoofa

Thanks for the Tip. It's on the Parking Prankster site now.
tiny url slash j3enpob

Need to prepare a case against UKPC for data breaches and contract breaches.
Is there anyone you can recommend who can help me pursue this ? I'm willing to pay for it as I want to see it through especially after all the stress and missed family time I had to spend behind this case.