Help needed! Have a letter from Northampton County Court Business Centre

jord22

I don't feel your replies are helping.

This is the first time I've ever had to experience anything like this so forgive me for not really knowing what to do or where to start. I mean, am I legally obliged to pay this?

I can obtain a picture of the UKPC sign from the car park later this week, but I haven't kept any of the NTK's or the PCN's or any correspondence they sent.

I've contacted Private Parking Appeals this afternoon who are hopefully going to get back to me as soon as possible to help me with this as I really don't want to pay.

jord22

I've taken a look at that but I have had the particulars sent to me already, so I'm none the wiser as to which bit of that forum post applies to me.

System

Acknowledge the claim first. That gives you 28 days from the date on the claim form to do all this !!!! like getting pics. Simple to do

jord22

Hi IanEmanresu - I noticed that you took on UKPC.

I might have to pick your brain and use your case for my own! How did you go about it?

System

Its a paperwork process so acknowledge the claim first.

The next step is a defence and there are plenty around for you to use the relevant bits. Post it here and people will help.

Once the defence is in, there is a period of time you use to get the facts together but a defence (it only needs to cover the main issues in partial detail) is needed to get to the next stage.

jord22

So here's a rundown:

Here are some details:

I have received 9 PCN's over the period of 12 months from UKPC after parking on a private car park at Coventry University, where I used to work. I simply parked on said car park as it was the closest car park to my building where I was based.

The car park in question was an uneven and rocky car park in which there where no clear parking bays/markings and on many occasions of using the car park, the pay metre was broken and didn't read either a student card or a staff card (had to validate it so you could pay). I chose not to pay on these occasions as I was either in a rush, or simply didn't have time.

I chose to ignore the PCN's as I thought this would make them go away. I then received strongly worded letters which I no longer have, that stated that I then had to pay even more money in fines as I hadn't coughed up what I 'owed'.

I have no received a county court claim and particulars from UKPC and SCS Law to say that they're taking me to court to get their 'costs' from me.

Reading these forums, I have noticed that there are many people on here who have chosen to defend themselves, stating that there isn't a 'contract' between themselves and the private parking company who have issued their PCN's and won.

From here, how do I begin to build my defence?

Umkomaas

Whilst your initial issue was a parking charge notice, this has now moved towards a small claims court case.

The main expertise on this forum is fighting private parking charges at the initial stages of the process. We do not purport, as a very small group of forum regulars, to have legal experience or qualifications. In many respects once legal action commences many of us are outside our pay grade and so the advice may not necessarily be as comprehensive or firmly based as that given at the early stages of a PCN.

In fact you may feel that you are not receiving many responses at all, but no one will give advice unless they are confident that it is correct and in your best interest, and now you are involved in the legal process, there will be even greater hesitation.

That is not to say that regulars won't comment on your thread, some may even be able to advise quite confidently, but as you are now at the more serious end of the process, my advice is that you cast your net much wider and seek parallel advice from forums where there is probably a greater number of advisers with court/legal knowledge, qualification and experience.

So I recommend you, at least, read through the following forums to look at the advice being given in similar cases, and if you feel it necessary, you register with one/some/all forums and post there for complementary help and assistance.

MONEY SAVING EXPERT
Here on this forum, small claims court expert 'bargepole' has put together a thumbnail guide to the process you need to follow, so the recommendation is to read this first, via this link:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/61084955#Comment_61084955

LEGAL BEAGLES
http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/forumdisplay.php?384-Parking-Live-Court-Claims

CONSUMER ACTION GROUP
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/forumdisplay.php?88-Private-Land-Parking-Enforcement

PEPIPOO
http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?act=SF&s=&f=60

jord22

I have found out today that they do have a contract with the University to manage that car park - could I still challenge them on this to prove it?

jord22

Hi everyone,

So I've had my PoC through from SCS Law which I've gone back to them with a stern reply with help from a forum member. Here's there response:

We write further to your email of 17 October 2016.

We disagree with your assertions that our claim form and particulars of claim fail to adhere to CPR 16.

A concise statement of the claim is precisely what has been provided on the claim form. Our claim form states that the claim has been brought against you to recover sums owed in respect of unpaid parking charge notices incurred as a result of your breach of the terms and conditions of parking at a site managed by our client.

The particulars of claim are also clear. Our client has pursued this claim against you as the registered keeper of the vehicle to recover unpaid parking charge notices incurred as a result of your vehicle having been parked in a designated pay and display space without clearly displaying a valid ticket (the terms breached) on each occasion specified, which was in breach of the terms and conditions of parking set out on signage. We refer you to paragraph 2, 3, 4 and sub paragraphs 4.1 to 4.7 of our particulars of claim which sets this out.

Sub paragraphs 4.1 to 4.7 go on to particularise the terms breached, the location of each breach and the amounts owed in relation to each breach. The damages/loss our client seeks are the sums owed from the parking charge notices issued to your vehicle which remain unpaid. This is stated at paragraphs 5 and 6 and also set out in the particulars of loss.

There is no requirement in CPR 16 that the particulars of claim be accompanied by evidence at this stage of the proceedings. Our client will in due course file the evidence it is seeking to rely on in advance of any hearing on this matter.

For the avoidance of doubt, we will not be amending our particulars of claim and therefore advise that you duly file your defence within the required time frame for doing so.

Any advice on what to do next?

Coupon-mad

jord22 wrote: »

I have contacted xxx to try and get their help too.

So I can't assist...sorry.