Help with parking charge notice. Please.

ShatteredDad

Last weekend a driver took his partner and his 22 month old daughter to Blackpool on Saturday afternoon to enjoy the piers and arcades. Took them about 85 minutes to get into Blackpool and when they arrived the place was absolutely heaving. Traffic crawling, car parks full. Over the course of 45 minutes they drove round Blackpool looking for a parking space, that included driving round 5 seperate car parks.
Both of them were desperate for the toilet and daughter was upset in the back of the car, tired, hungry and needed a nappy change. It was absolute nightmare.
Anyway, finally found a small car park with one single space left. Parked vehicle, went to pay & display machine OUT OF ORDER (despite cars other cars in the car park with tickets dsiplayed). Imagine their frustration. Driver rang the number on the machine hoping to pay with debit card and report the machine faulty. Just a standard automated message saying thanks for reporting a faulty machine (even though it didn't actually let them tell it the location of the faulty machine) but not to park if you can't fullfill the terms and conditions, i.e pay.
Not parking at that time was simply not an option. Driver took a picture of the faulty machine and went off for their day out. Returned 2.5 ours later to a ticket, checked the machine again and still not working. Had it been working the driver would have paid the appropriate charge for time spent in the car park. Took another picture of the machine not working.
Charge issued by North West Car Parks ltd, £60 if paid with 14 days £100 otherwise. Driver simply cannot afford this charge. Driver supporting a family on £23k a year. Couldn't even afford to go to Blackpool but they cannot just stay in 365 days a year doing nothing. Now they are expected to pay double what the day out cost them.
Sounds like a bit of a sob story, which the driver supposes it is a bit but these faceless organisations just get on his nerves. Driver doesnt feel like they are entitled to park their car as and where they please, but simply not parking and continuing to drive round on that day was absolutely not an option.
Driver has absolutely no intention whatsoever to pay this charge. Driver has have typed out a letter of appeal here along with the photos of the machine not working during their stay and offered to pay £3.50 for the parking. My question is do they send this or do they just not engage? Driver really does not have the time or energy to deal with these people. Driver currently working 60 hours a week trying to scrape in money for Christmas and could jsut do without these people on top of it at the moment.
Please, any advice the driver would appreciate it.

Fruitcake

Was the PCN left on the windscreen or did it come through the post. If the latter, please give the dates of the alleged event and the date you received the PCN/NTK through the post.

You should remove all reference in your original post as to who did what. Don't use "I". Only refer to "The Driver"
Private parking companies monitor these sites and giving away the driver's details gives away a valuable appeal point. You should also remove all the other personal family information. All anyone needs to know is that a car visited the car park and the driver found a problem with the ticket machines, so the driver took pictures.

When you have done the above, please read the Sticky thread for NEWBIES. You will need to send the IPC template at some point that you will find there, after you have told us if you got a windscreen ticket or postal NTK. Print off the acronyms/abbreviations page as this will help you.

Please answer the questions and edit your post before doing anything else.

Do not pay, do not ignore, do not send your appeal letter as you will probably reveal the driver's identity.

DollyDee_2

Is the company North West Car Parks Ltd or Northwest Parking Enforcement Ltd?

Can't find the first one on either BPA or IPC AOS Members List but Northwest Parking Enforcement Ltd is an IPC member.

What was the actual date of the parking event (for want of a better word).

Cross posted with Fruitcake.

Fruitcake

DollyDee wrote: »

Is the company North West Car Parks Ltd or Northwest Parking Enforcement Ltd?

Can't find the first one on either BPA or IPC AOS Members List but Northwest Parking Enforcement Ltd is an IPC member.

What was the actual date of the parking event (for want of a better word).

Cross posted with Fruitcake.

NWCP (NW Car Parks Ltd) is an IPC member, a bit further down the list from t'other lot.

DollyDee_2

Sorry, found them, NW Car Parks Ltd - IPC.

Cross posted again.

ShatteredDad

edited.
It was a windscreen ticket. Blurb on the back says driver must provide them with my full name and address etc or they will ignore the appeal. Vehicle is registered in the drivers partners name. Driver is now very confused as to what they should do!


Im sure it is north west car parks ltd, as that is the address on the enveope I have my appeal stuff inside of. Cant lay my hands on the ticket right nw, will try and be certain and update when I can.


Date of parking event was 22.10.2016. Not much time in which to send this appeal left.

Fruitcake

ShatteredDad wrote: »

edited.
It was a windscreen ticket. Blurb on the back says driver must provide them with my full name and address etc or they will ignore the appeal. Vehicle is registered in the drivers partners name. Driver is now very confused as to what they should do!


Im sure it is north west car parks ltd, as that is the address on the enveope I have my appeal stuff inside of. Cant lay my hands on the ticket right nw, will try and be certain and update when I can.


Date of parking event was 22.10.2016. Not much time in which to send this appeal left.

Good editing. :T

Don't appeal just yet. Does the PCN say you have 21 or 28 days to appeal? You need to send the IPC template from the NEWBIES thread as close to that date as possible. So, around day 19 online if they gave you 21 days, around day 26 online if they gave you 28 days.
If the PCN says you have to do it by post, then send two days earlier still (Days 17 or 24) from a Post Office counter, first class, and ensure you get a free proof of posting. Don't use any other method of posting if online is not permitted by the PPC.
The reasons why are all explained in the NEWBIES thread, and you still have time to do your homework before sending it off.

PPCs tell lies. DO NOT GIVE THE DRIVER'S NAME or any details that could identify them. You are sending a keeper appeal. The keeper can lawfully be the person in charge of the car on the day, who may or may not be the registered keeper. Don't muck it up, the keeper on the day is the person who appeals at the time specified.

Do not send the appeal the driver has written! Use the one from the NEWBIES thread.

Carthesis

Do as Fruitcake says above, but to put a bit more meat on the bones for you (I've a 16-month old, so I feel at least some of your pain!):

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4816822 - this is the **NEWBIES** thread. You'll need to read it, but basically it walks you through the process.

Are you sure it's North West Car Parks Ltd.? I ask only as that company was dissolved in October 2011. Could it be Northwest Parking Enforcement () instead, who confusingly don't have the same website URL as company name? If so, they're IPC members, which is the slightly scummier and less reasonable (not saying much!) evil-step-brother of the BPA.

Send off the appropriate IPC template appeal letter from the thread I linked above, but first answer these questions:

1) Date and time of parking event? You say last weekend - meaning 28th / 29th October?

2) Presumably this was a windscreen ticket, and not a postal Notice to Keeper (NtK)? If so, then DON'T DO ANYTHING JUST YET! Read the **NEWBIES** thread for details, but efectively there are prescriptive time limits on things. Once you've had a windscreen ticket, then if it hasn't been paid, then the PPC can try to transfer liability to the Keeper under PoFA(2012). HOWEVER they only have 56 days from the parking event to have a postal NtK in the hands of the Keeper. The idea therefore is to distract them with an appeal at the right time, hoping they forget to do so.

Don't worry about this. I realise it might be a significant chunk of money to you and you're a bit under the cosh at the moment, but the odds are you aren't paying this invoice.

Don't be scared by words like 'court' and 'CCJ' and 'debt collectors' and the like. It's all just intimidation.

Carthesis

And Fruitcake and DollyDee have beaten me to it all!

DollyDee_2

Exact company name is very important and their company number if stated on the ticket. Can you remember name & location of car park?

Fruitcake

Carthesis wrote: »

And Fruitcake and DollyDee have beaten me to it all!

I am fully charged having just had a full English brekkers at a hotel.

That's interesting about the company being dissolved as they appear on the current IPC list as far as I can tell.

edit.

Just checked that I have got the latest list, and they are definitely there.