parking fines - railway car park

zed37

Dear All,

Please can someone help i have a car with my work - nhs and got this PCN from APCOA Parking at Manchester Victoria Station for alleged contravention of use of private car park without making a valid payment. it is a notice to hirer, it says they issued a notice to keeper and then got vehicles keeper data from DVLA under regulation 27. i was probably in there for 10 mins only stayed in the car as was picking my son but it was raining and dark. the incident happened on 18.3.17 and the date of issue of notice is 27.4.17 ( only recd it on 2nd May, 2017). I have received 2 letters one says i can pay within 14 days and the other says since i have missed the deadline i have to pay 85. but i only got the letter on 2nd and 4th of May. ??? not sure what is going on.

can i appeal this and can i use this as an appeal letter.

I refer to the above-detailed Parking Charge Notice (“PCN”) issued to me by APCOA Parking UK as a Notice to Hirer. I confirm that as the hirer of this vehicle, I am its keeper for the purpose of the corresponding definition under Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (“POFA”) and I write to formally challenge the validity of this PCN.

You will no doubt be familiar with the strict requirements of Schedule 4 of POFA to be followed in order for a parking operator to be able to invoke keeper liability for a Parking Charge. There are a number of reasons why APCOA’s Notice to Hirer did not comply with POFA; in order that you may understand why, I suggest that you carefully study the details of Paragraphs 13 and 14 of Schedule 4 in particular.

Given that APCOA has forfeited its right to keeper liability, please confirm that you shall now cancel this charge. Alternatively, should you choose to reject my challenge, please provide me with details of the Independent Appeals Service (POPLA), their contact details and a unique POPLA appeal reference so that I may escalate the matter to POPLA.

thanks for any comments in advance.

Coupon-mad

Yes that is good research, a perfect first appeal for a Hire car case (hat tip to Edna Basher, who wrote it).

zed37

recd reply back from apcoa- they are sayig the site is private land subject to stat control of the railway bye-laws and notices are not issued under PoFA. what is the next step please. i have a popa number as well

Redx

draft a popla appeal based on recent railway popla appeal examples by other members

also read post #3 of that NEWBIES sticky thread you have already read

Fruitcake

zed37 wrote: »

recd reply back from apcoa- they are sayig the site is private land subject to stat control of the railway bye-laws and notices are not issued under PoFA. what is the next step please. i have a popa number as well

Appeal to PoPLA using all the available template points available to you in post 3 of the NEWBIES. You also need to add that as the have helpfully told you the car park is subject to byelaws, it is not relevant land as defined by the POFA 2012 so they must cancel the charge.

Make sure you put Byelaws in the title so the PoPLA assesor sees it.

zed37

POPLA Ref ...................
APCOA Parking PCN no .......................

A notice to hirer was issued on 2nd of May, 2017 and received by me, the registered keeper of the vehicle in question alleged contravention that occurred on 18th March, 2017. I am writing to you as the registered keeper and would be grateful if you would please consider my appeal for the following reasons.

From their rejection of my initial appeal, it appears that APCOA are attempting to claim the charge is liable to them under railway byelaws. I reject this and put them strictly to proof on which byelaw they claim is broken, and in any case, why this would result in an obligation to pay APCOA. I understand that APCOA do not own the car park and that railway by-laws apply. This means the site is not considered 'relevant land' under the POFA 2012.


(1) APCOA has failed to notify me, the keeper, and a charge notice within 14 days of the parking period in question.

If APCOA want to make use of the Keeper Liability provisions in Schedule 4 of POFA 2012 and APCOA have not issued and delivered a parking charge notice to the driver in the place where the parking event took place, your Notice to Keeper must meet the strict requirements and timetable set out in the Schedule (in particular paragraph 9). I have had no evidence that APCOA have complied with these BPA Code requirements for ANPR issued tickets so require them to evidence their compliance to POPLA. Furthermore, the notice to keeper was not received within the maximum 14 day period from the date of the alleged breach. Specifically, the alleged breach occurred on 18th March, 2107, and the notice to hirer was received 45 days later on 2nd May, 2017.

The BPA code of practice also says '20.14 when you serve a Notice to Keeper, you must also include information telling the keeper the ‘reasonable cause’ you had for asking the DVLA for their details.' The PCN does not provide this information; this does not comply with the BPA code point 20.14.


2. The notice shows photos of the car entering and leaving the car park. At no time has a photograph shown evidence that this car using the charged spaces provided. This contravenes Schedule 4 para 8 & 9 of PoFA. Amount demanded is a penalty and is punitive, contravening the Consumer Rights Act 2015. The authority on this is ParkingEye v Beavis. That case was characterised, by clear and ample signage where the motorist had time to read, and then consider the signage and decide whether to accept or not. In this case the signage was neither clear not ample, and the motorist had not time to read the signage, let alone consider it, as the charge was applied instantly the vehicle stopped. The signage cannot be read safely from a moving vehicle

3. APCOA not using POFA 2012. - Non-compliance with requirements and timetable set out in Schedule 4 of POFA 2012 - Under Schedule 4 of PoFA 2012, section 1, it states that:

“(1) This schedule applies where –
(a) The driver of a vehicle is required by virtue of a relevant obligation to pay parking charges in respect of the parking of the vehicle on relevant land”. Following from this, in section 3, PoFA 2012 states that: “(1) In this schedule “relevant land” means any land (including land above or below ground level) other than - … (b) any land … on which the parking of a vehicle is subject to statutory control”. And that: “(3) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) (c) the parking of a vehicle on land is “subject to statutory control” if any statutory provision imposes a liability (whether criminal or civil, and whether in the form of a fee or charge or a penalty of any kind) in respect of the parking on that land of vehicles generally or of vehicles of a description that includes the vehicle in question”.


(4) Not relevant Land under POFA 2012; no registered keeper liability (ref POPLA case Steve Macallan 6062356150).

Since byelaws apply to railway land, the land is not relevant land within the meaning of PoFA and so is specifically excluded from 'keeper liability' under Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. As I am the registered keeper I am not legally liable as this Act does not apply on this land. I ask the Operator for strict proof otherwise if they disagree with this point and would require them to show evidence including documentary proof from the Rail authorities that this land is not already covered by byelaws. Railway land, being governed by Byelaws, is not relevant land and Keeper Liability under POFA does not apply, and therefore APCOA are unable to pursue the registered keeper in lieu of the driver’s details.
I do not believe that the Operator has demonstrated a proprietary interest in the land, because they have no legal possession which would give APCOA Parking Ltd any right to offer parking spaces, let alone allege a contract with third party customers of the lawful owner/occupiers. In addition, APCOA Parking Ltd’s lack of title in this land means they have no legal standing to allege trespass or loss, if that is the basis of their charge. I require APCOA Parking Ltd to demonstrate their legal ownership of the land to POPLA.

I contend that APCOA Parking Ltd is only an agent working for the owner and their signs do not help them to form a contract without any consideration capable of being offered. VCS-v-HMRC 2012 is the binding decision in the Upper Chamber which covers this issue with compelling statements of fact about this sort of business model.

I believe there is no contract with the landowner/occupier that entitles APCOA Parking Ltd to levy these charges and therefore it has no authority to issue parking charge notices (PCNs). This being the case, the burden of proof shifts to APCOA Parking Ltd to prove otherwise so I require that APCOA Parking Ltd produce a copy of their contract with the owner/occupier and that the POPLA adjudicator scrutinises it. Even if a basic contract is produced and mentions PCNs, the lack of ownership or assignment of title or interest in the land reduces any contract to one that exists simply on an agency basis between APCOA Parking Ltd and the owner/occupier, containing nothing that APCOA Parking Ltd can lawfully use in their own name as a mere agent, that could impact on a third party customer.

(5) The operator has not shown that the individual who it is pursuing is in fact the driver who was liable for the charge. (ref POPLA case Carly Law 6061796103).
In cases with a keeper appellant, yet no POFA 'keeper liability' to rely upon, POPLA must first consider whether they are confident that the Assessor knows who the driver is, based on the evidence received. No presumption can be made about liability whatsoever. A vehicle can be driven by any person (with the consent of the owner) as long as the driver is insured. There is no dispute that the driver was entitled to drive the car and I can confirm that they were, but I am exercising my right not to name that person.

Where a charge is aimed only at a driver then, of course, no other party can be told to pay. I am the appellant throughout (as I am entitled to be), and as there has been no admission regarding who was driving, and no evidence has been produced, it has been held by POPLA on numerous occasions, that a parking charge cannot be enforced against a keeper without a valid NTK.

As the keeper of the vehicle, it is my right to choose not to name the driver, yet still not be lawfully held liable if an operator is not using or complying with Schedule 4. This applies regardless of when the first appeal was made because the fact remains I am only the keeper and ONLY Schedule 4 of the POFA (or evidence of who was driving) can cause a keeper appellant to be deemed to be the liable party.

The burden of proof rests with the Operator, because they cannot use the POFA in this case, to show that (as an individual) I have personally not complied with terms in place on the land and show that I am personally liable for their parking charge. They cannot.

Furthermore, the vital matter of full compliance with the POFA 2012 was confirmed by parking law expert barrister, Henry Greenslade, the previous POPLA Lead Adjudicator, in 2015:

Understanding keeper liability

“There appears to be continuing misunderstanding about Schedule 4. Provided certain conditions are strictly complied with, it provides for recovery of unpaid parking charges from the keeper of the vehicle.

There is no ‘reasonable presumption’ in law that the registered keeper of a vehicle is the driver. Operators should never suggest anything of the sort. Further, a failure by the recipient of a notice issued under Schedule 4 to name the driver, does not of itself mean that the recipient has accepted that they were the driver at the material time. Unlike, for example, a Notice of Intended Prosecution where details of the driver of a vehicle must be supplied when requested by the police, pursuant to Section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, a keeper sent a Schedule 4 notice has no legal obligation to name the driver. [...] If {POFA 2012 Schedule 4 is} not complied with then keeper liability does not generally pass."

Therefore, no lawful right exists to pursue unpaid parking charges from myself as keeper of the vehicle, where an operator is NOT attempting to transfer the liability for the charge using the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

This exact finding was made in 6061796103 against ParkingEye in September 2016, where POPLA Assessor Carly Law found:
"I note the operator advises that it is not attempting to transfer the liability for the charge using the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 and so in mind, the operator continues to hold the driver responsible. As such, I must first consider whether I am confident that I know who the driver is, based on the evidence received. After considering the evidence, I am unable to confirm that the appellant is in fact the driver. As such, I must allow the appeal on the basis that the operator has failed to demonstrate that the appellant is the driver and therefore liable for the charge. As I am allowing the appeal on this basis, I do not need to consider the other grounds of appeal raised by the appellant. Accordingly, I must allow this appeal."

The same conclusion was reached by POPLA Assessor Steve Macallan, quoted in appeal point above.

(6) Misleading and unclear signage.

The signs do not meet the minimum requirements in part 18 of the BPA code of practice. They were not clear and intelligible as required. The BPA Code of Practice states under appendix B, that entrance signage: “must be readable from far enough away so that drivers can take in all the essential text without needing to look more than 10 degrees away from the road ahead.”

For a contract to be formed, one of the many considerations is that there must be adequate signage on entering the car park, and furthermore a Notice is not imported into the contract unless brought home “so prominently that the party ‘must’ have known of it” and agreed terms. I contend that this is not the case, and question the fact that the driver saw any sign specifying the amount of the ‘fine’ that would be due, and so there was no consideration or acceptance and no contract agreed between the parties. The sign upon entering Manchester Victoria railway station car park does not even mention the amount of the parking charge at all, which is in breach of 2(3) of schedule 4 of the POFA and contrary to the BPA code of practice. Upon inspection of another sign elsewhere in the car park, the terms of the ‘fine’ are in very small typeface which therefore means that this sign is not clear or prominent enough to form any contract with a driver before parking. Such an onerous obligation should be the most prominent part of the sign, as is stated in Lord Denning's Red Hand Rule.


8) No landowner contract nor legal standing to form contracts or charge drivers
9) As per section 13 of the BPA Code of Practice: 'You should allow the driver a reasonable 'grace period' in which to decide if they are going to stay or go. If the driver is on your land without permission, you should still allow them a grace period to read your signs and leave before you take enforcement action.' Therefore, if a driver stops for a short period of time to read a sign, they must have the opportunity to leave and not accept the terms of an alleged 'contract'.

Any motorist would find the above delays to be normal, expected, justifiable, and in any case not part of the period for which parking is being paid. I refer you to Parking Eye vs Hotchin in which the judge ruled that ANPR evidence only showed the vehicle’s time of entry and exit to the car park – not the time parked. Current signage in the car park only requires payment for times parked.

I refer you to the BPA’s Approved Operator Scheme Code of Conduct v6, with which it is expected that Smart Parking Ltd abides:

• 13 Grace periods
• 13.1 Your approach to parking management must allow a driver who enters your car park but decides not to park, to leave the car park within a reasonable period without having their vehicle issued with a parking charge notice.
• 13.2 You should allow the driver a reasonable ‘grace period’ in which to decide if they are going to stay or go. If the driver is on your land without permission you should still allow them a grace period to read your signs and leave before you take enforcement action.
• 13.3 You should be prepared to tell us the specific grace period at a site if our compliance team or our agents ask what it is.


I therefore request that POPLA uphold my appeal and cancel this PCN.

zed37

need to update pictures into it of car leaving and going. also need to upload the parking signage.

Coupon-mad

If they faffed around for weeks getting your details and called it a 'NOTICE TO HIRER' then surely you are not the registered keeper of the car? You are the hirer/lessee (lease or company car)?

zed37

Hi Coupon Mad yes its a company car and its taken them that long to get details. is that appeal okay shall i send that through to popla appeals.

zed37

so i should change that to i am the lessee (company car).

StaffsSW

It's interesting that APCOA will transfer liability to the hirer, yet after a long discussion with Wright Hassall today, they insisted that under railway byelaw 14 "The Owner" is always liable.

When I asked them for their definition of owner, they said it was the registered keeper. But on the front of the V5 document, it clearly states "this document is not proof of ownership". In my specific case, the vehicle is owned by a german finance company, and we pay a monthly finance charge for it. Although we are the RK, the finance company has title to the vehicle as owner - they are the ones that paid for it.

Wright Hassall have now agreed not to pursue my company any more Indigo/ZZPS tickets, and I'm getting this in writing.

I do wonder why APCOA have a different interpretation of Byelaw 14?