DEBT RECOVERY NOTICE - Matalan Worksop

BusyBoust

Hi there, apologies if I cover content already posted about. I have been trying to read the newbie stickies and make sense of them. All of this is new to me.
On 25-02-17 my family and I went shopping in Matalan. We purchased a ticket for the time in which we thought we would be finished and out, not so though. The store was busy and my husband walks with crutches (PIP awarded) we had underestimated the time we would be in store. We exceeded our ticket (If I recall by approx 30minutes) but we were in store purchasing goods, I still have my receipt showing the time we went through the checkout.
I don't recall receiving a parking charge notice but in all honesty the car is my husbands and it's possible he received one and ignored it in the belief they're unenforceable, it's also possible we never actually received one. In any event I have no idea what the original charge was.
Today we received a 'Debt Recovery Plus' enforcement notice credit or listed as Smart Parking Ltd informing my husband as registered keeper that he has until 19-04-17 to pay £155!! For overstaying paid time, or face a court summons.
I'm not sure if any of the templates I have found apply in our situation? I intended to email Matalan about this but cannot find a template to do so (I'm new to navigating forums, I appreciate it may be there I just cannot find it).
I'm not sure exactly what to do now or where to go from here.
Any help will be much appreciated

beamerguy

BusyBoust wrote: »

Hi there, apologies if I cover content already posted about. I have been trying to read the newbie stickies and make sense of them. All of this is new to me.
On 25-02-17 my family and I went shopping in Matalan. We purchased a ticket for the time in which we thought we would be finished and out, not so though. The store was busy and my husband walks with crutches (PIP awarded) we had underestimated the time we would be in store. We exceeded our ticket (If I recall by approx 30minutes) but we were in store purchasing goods, I still have my receipt showing the time we went through the checkout.
I don't recall receiving a parking charge notice but in all honesty the car is my husbands and it's possible he received one and ignored it in the belief they're unenforceable, it's also possible we never actually received one. In any event I have no idea what the original charge was.
Today we received a 'Debt Recovery Plus' enforcement notice credit or listed as Smart Parking Ltd informing my husband as registered keeper that he has until 19-04-17 to pay £155!! For overstaying paid time, or face a court summons.
I'm not sure if any of the templates I have found apply in our situation? I intended to email Matalan about this but cannot find a template to do so (I'm new to navigating forums, I appreciate it may be there I just cannot find it).
I'm not sure exactly what to do now or where to go from here.
Any help will be much appreciated

WHAT TO DO NOW ???

Search on this site for DRP

IGNORE DRP, it's been said 1000's of times on here

WHY ?
Because DRP are are just timewasters who have no power, they cannot take you to court, only not so Smart can do that

Complain to the CEO of Matalan asking why he allows his customers to be harassed by a company who have no power

BusyBoust

Thank you :j
I have just searched for an email address for their CEO. Not sure if it's the correct one or not.
Is there a pemplate for this complaint that would help me?

I'm concerned that they write on their letters if you do not respond by then you are admitting liability for the charge (what utter tosh!).

Umkomaas

No Matalan template - start by going back to the store and complaining vociferously there to the manager - take your receipts with you, as well as your membership card and any old bank/cc statements showing regular patronage.

If that doesn't work write to their CEO. You need to bring up the need for your husband to be legally provided with 'reasonable adjustments' as per The Equality Act 2010, so you need to read that and be prepared to threaten to sue Matalan.

Matalan seem to be getting fed up with Smart and there is some anecdote that they are being removed from their sites, so you may be pushing at a half-open door in asking Matalan to cancel this.

Ignore DRP (NEWBIES FAQ sticky Section 4). There will be no summons - you have not committed any crime! This is civil law, contractual stuff - but just look how many Smart Parking have sued through the county courts:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2329119

Over 600,000 tickets issued in the past couple of years. Not one person sued. What do reckon the odds are on you being their very first?

To recap - get complaining, ignore DRP.

beamerguy

BusyBoust wrote: »

Thank you :j
I have just searched for an email address for their CEO. Not sure if it's the correct one or not.
Is there a pemplate for this complaint that would help me?

I'm concerned that they write on their letters if you do not respond by then you are admitting liability for the charge (what utter tosh!).

Matalan

Mr Jason Hargreaves Managing Director

Email barton_c@matalan.co.uk

Not certain why the email address has a different name

DRP saying " you are admitting liability"

WHAT A LOT OF RUBBISH DRP SPOUT

The_Deep

Your husband may well be a protected person under the Equality Act 2010 and entitled to reasonable ajustments from service prividers because of his disability. One such adjustment which might be considered reasonable would be to cancel the PCN. If the PCN refuses, involve Matalan, think also Facebook and Twitter.

Companies found guilty of disability discrimination can be made by a Judge to pay their victims compensation.

Read this

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equality-act-2010-guidance

BusyBoust

Umkomaas wrote: »

No Matalan template - start by going back to the store and complaining vociferously there to the manager - take your receipts with you, as well as your membership card and any old bank/cc statements showing regular patronage.

If that doesn't work write to their CEO. You need to bring up the need for your husband to be legally provided with 'reasonable adjustments' as per The Equality Act 2010, so you need to read that and be prepared to threaten to sue Matalan.

Matalan seem to be getting fed up with Smart and there is some anecdote that they are being removed from their sites, so you may be pushing at a half-open door in asking Matalan to cancel this.

Ignore DRP (NEWBIES FAQ sticky Section 4). There will be no summons - you have not committed any crime! This is civil law, contractual stuff - but just look how many Smart Parking have sued through the county courts:

[LINK REMOVED]

Over 600,000 tickets issued in the past couple of years. Not one person sued. What do reckon the odds are on you being their very first?

To recap - get complaining, ignore DRP.

Cannot go back to store used as the one we were in is not local to me.
I will email their CEO with your suggested content included.
Thanks

pogofish

Post Four of the Newbies Sticky tells you all you need to know about dealing with DRP!

BusyBoust

I'm going to try and navigate this place a little better.
I now know NOT to contact DRP at all.
I have no idea if we ever received a PCN in the first place (I see another thread has similar issues). I don't dispute we were over I remember saying so as we queued in store that we'd exceeded our ticket. I think the store has a 2 hour policy. We were withing that but I'm not sure if we purchased a 30m ticket and were almost an hour or 1 hour ticket and got out at almost 90 minute. Either way we went over but stayed within maximum stay time
I will email the CEO (thanks #beamerguy that's the same email address I sourced too) and await further news. I will ignore DRP and see if Smart Parking get in touch.

Should I include the reference on my DRP letter in my email? I have no idea what reference was on any original notice they claim to have issued.

Thanks all.

beamerguy

And there is your first point to the CEO

"I don't dispute we were over I remember saying so as we queued in store that we'd exceeded our ticket.

Typical of Matalan is the check out queue and lack of staff.
You are being penalised by this

Why not enclose a copy of the DRP letter to show the CEO the result of letting vermin run around in their car parks, they being Smart

Umkomaas

I will ignore DRP and see if Smart Parking get in touch.

Unlikely that you will hear from Smart again. They've just about given up on it and handed it over to debt collectors to see if they can put the frighteners on in the hope that they might be able to squeeze something out of your purse.

Should I include the reference on my DRP letter in my email? I have no idea what reference was on any original notice they claim to have issued.

The DRP reference number ** will mean nothing to Matalan, but if they are to contact Smart to cancel they will need to have the keepers name and address (your husband, not you), car's VRM, date of 'contravention', and any other information for Smart to identify the ticket, if you haven't got the NtK identifier. Don't forget they are issuing around 1,000 tickets per day across the whole country.

The email really should be as though it is coming from your husband - although you can write it for him.

** but I agree with beamer in letting them see the type of drivel customers are receiving and having to spend hours upon hours dealing with as a result of Matalan allowing such rubbish to be in their car parks.