Not your usual PCN, Excel Parking

Trepidgiraffe

Hello.

I have read the newbies thread but cannot find anything similar to the circumstances that I will describe below.

My partners car was stationary in a car park on 06/01/2017. There is a fee payable of 50p for 1 hours parking. The car park is not covered by ANPR cameras.

The driver of the car went to the machine, there was a queue, and when it became their turn they realised they didn't have the correct change for it, and returned to the car. The car left. The Reg keeper wasn't driving.

When they got back to the car, a plastic envelope with a piece of printed cardboard was inside with the name 'MyParkingCharge.co.uk' on. See the. image below

It has a serial number on it and a date only, hand written. It has no offence date, time, day, location, penalty details, appeal details or registration number of the car. As far as I can see, reading the rules - PoFA 2012, this appears to be an invalid Notice to Driver (NTD)

The date on this card was 06/01/2017. The card directs the driver to visit the site. The site wasn't visited at the time, as the mere look of the card made the driver think the card was a 'prank'.

On 19/01/2017 my partner as the Reg Keeper, received a Notice to Keeper (NTK) letter from Excel Parking. This has all the day, date, time, location car registration and contravention details. The issue date of the NTK is 13/01/2017, but was only received on 19/01/2017. A key point here is the NTK was issued 7 days after the purported NTD. Clearly something is wrong with this, as I understand the NTK should not be issued until after 14 days at least, and in the case of a NTD between 29 and 56 days. It appears that DVLA have been contacted very very early to get the keeper details.

The NTK doesn't mention PoFA act. It states the appeal services is IAS, and Excel are a member of the International Parking Community - IPC.

The NTK has no ANPR information or pictures of the car or contravention, and states the driver is liable for the charge.

The NTK states the charge is £100, reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days.

I am composing an email to DVLA for the intentional abuse of the PoFA rules Excel and the DVLAs breach.

As the NTD is flawed (in my opinion) approaching DVLA is improper and the issuing of the NTK within 28 days means the Reg Keeper is not liable, only the driver, who has not been identified.

Today, I visited the myparkingcharge website. The page has 8 pictures of the car parked between 17:13:58 and 17:25, and dated 6/01/2017. There is a blurry picture of a sign.

The page also has 3 button inviting you to pay the charge, appeal the charge and provide 3rd party information. I have declined all offers.

Any thought for suggestion on how to proceed would be gratefully received.


(As a new users I cannot post links to the documents recd. I do have sanitised copies available)

Umkomaas

It might have helped to tell us you've posted this over on PePiPoo, with 33 inputs as of this evening, to avoid duplication of advice and effort - most regulars advise on both forums.

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=111249

Trepidgiraffe

As you can see it is my first post here, and wasn't aware of the duplication of form users.

pogofish

I'm finding the idea of Excel issuing an "unusual" ticket somewhat difficult to grasp. Most if not all the ones we see here are depressingly similar.

Don't make the mistake of thinking you are in a different boat from anyone else with one of their invoices - Excel don't care about you or what actually happened and you will near-certainly fail if you do anything other than follow the well tried and tested advice here.

Trepidgiraffe

I say its an unusual ticket, because having seen other tickets issued, this isn't a ticket, Its a notice directing the driver to a website only, with a hand written date on. No contravention details. no penalty details, no time, no appeal details, nothing. Therefore, I consider it to be unusual, compared to what the PoFA states you must be given.

I would post the item. Is there a way for a new poster to do so ?

Edna_Basher

This is indeed a new approach which Excel / VCS have adopted in the last month or so.

They've come up with a (not so) clever wheeze of issuing a pseudo Notice to Driver (very non-compliant, but in my opinion a Notice to Driver nevertheless), followed up by a Notice to Keeper within 14 days as if a Notice to Driver had never been issued.

Their new style Notice to Keeper even makes an attempt to hold the keeper liable for the parking charge - even though it doesn't even refer to POFA 2012. The new arrangement allows "appeals" only to be submitted online to Excel's myparkingcharge website which, in my view is unfair practice putting consumers who do not have access to the internet at a significant disadvantage.

Excel / VCS have left themselves wide open for complaints to the DVLA concerning breaches of the Data Protection Act and of their KADOE contract.

I've been assisting a work colleague's in-laws with one of these new tickets. They've already posted a strong letter of complaint (not an "appeal") to VCS highlighting their DPA breaches. They will also be sending a very strong letter of complaint to the DVLA.

The more people that submit complaints to the DVLA, the better.

Trepidgiraffe

Thank You Edna,

Im glad you agree it is an unusual tactic.

I understand that they have not followed PoFA to the letter and how, and also the KADOE contract with DVLA.

How do I now approach the matter in these unusual circumstances, and how is it exactly they have beached the DPA.

I have a complaint email drafted to the DVLA that i will send on Monday.

Edna_Basher

Coupon-mad / SchoolRunMum has posted some useful points for inclusion in a complaint to the DVLA. Here's a link to her post on a thread over on pepipoo.

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=110710

It's Post #25 on that thread

Coupon-mad

Trepidgiraffe wrote: »

Thank You Edna,

Im glad you agree it is an unusual tactic.

I understand that they have not followed PoFA to the letter and how, and also the KADOE contract with DVLA.

How do I now approach the matter in these unusual circumstances, and how is it exactly they have beached the DPA.

I have a complaint email drafted to the DVLA that i will send on Monday.

I think this is the fourth thread on here about this - search this board for MyParkingCharge.co.uk and you will find the others.

It is my view that the Notice placed on the windscreen for the driver to find and read, which leads the driver to read a website telling them to pay or appeal, can only be described as a 'Notice to Driver'. It is woeful but it is certainly not a nullity so IMHO it is an on-screen 'NTD'.

So, VCS have obtained the data too soon and the more complaints to the DVLA about this farce, the better. As discussed on the other threads.

Trepidgiraffe

Many Thanks.

I will email DVLA with my complaint. I will post it here for perusal before I do so.

Trepidgiraffe

DVLA replied to the complaint email.

They state :

"Having reviewed the situation, I should firstly mention that the correspondence placed on the vehicle at the time in question is not a NTD, Excel Parking Services have introduced a process where instead of affixing a notice to driver on the vehicle, they place a notice to make the motorist aware the terms and conditions of parking may have been breached and an official notice will be issued via the postal system. Where a notice is not affixed to a vehicle, for the keeper liability provisions of PoFA to be utilised, a notice must then be delivered within 14 days of the event.

There is currently no requirement from DVLA that a notice to driver must be placed on the vehicle at the scene. Therefore any request for the keeper details may be submitted immediately"




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