'Challenge the Fine' gone! A dreadful Appeal Tool left as a legacy

Umkomaas

Well, after the initial blizzard of high profile media interviews (including a head-to-head with 'Up Your Skirt' Troy Boy) and the promises to sort out the private parking industry and the DVLA, Michael has now got himself a proper job - selling pet food.

As a final farewell he has left a D-I-Y appeals tool (fill in the boxes, and hey presto) for the naive to complete (and fall completely into the clutches of the PPC). Here is a list of the reasons Michael suggests could be used in the appeal. The majority are just dog-awful and are likely to blow both feet away before even starting:

I did not see the signs
I paid to park / own a permit
I accidentally entered the wrong license plate on my permit
Ticket machines were out of order
I overstayed because I am disabled / injured
The parking ticket came in the post after 14 days
I did not overstay
I only overstayed by 10 mins or less
I needed to sleep
I did not own the car
I was not driving the car
I was breastfeeding the child
Paying this ticket would cause me undue hardship
I was acting under an emergency
I got the ticket when parking somewhere outside of England / Wales

http://challengethefine.com/wp/appeals-tool/

While I admired his initial drive, I'm afraid that he appears to have succumbed to the lack of any real progress and the lure of a regular salary.

The fight continues, one marine down!

Ryandavis1959

"If a parking company or debt collector has treated you particularly unfairly, you may be able to sue them back for unfair practices. This is known as counterclaiming. You do not even have to go to court to do this. You should be able to win £1,000 or more."

This does not marry up with the outcomes that we have been seeing on Facebook lately, so I wonder where he pulled the £1K figure from without even having to go to court?

If he's telling the truth then with the number of PCN's I've got I'll be debt free in no time.

Coupon-mad

I wonder if he let the domain slip and some unscrupulous parking firm has snapped it up and listed a load of rubbish appeal points for people to fall into their trap.

"If a parking company or debt collector has treated you particularly unfairly, you may be able to sue them back for unfair practices. This is known as counterclaiming. You do not even have to go to court to do this. You should be able to win £1,000 or more."

To me, that does not sound like an Oxbridge law graduate talking. Calling a claim a ''win'' sounds like eBay where people are deemed to have 'won' rather than purchased an item!

Ryandavis1959
Do us all a favour and stop going on about what 'we' have been seeing on Facebook, please. It's hardly the way to beat parking firms.

pappa_golf

I see this chap has offered to assist on the welsh "crowdfunding link " http://www.fair-parking.co.uk/

I worry at times

Ryandavis1959

Coupon-mad wrote: »

Ryandavis1959
Do us all a favour and stop going on about what 'we' have been seeing on Facebook, please. It's hardly the way to beat parking firms.

I beg to differ, Barry B and Tony T are both taking the fight to the ppf's where it hurts them most: in court. There are far more people talking about parking charges on Facebook than this website, plus Facebook seems to have a lot more Scottish users than MSE with Scotland specific advice both public and invite-only.

Coupon-mad

pappa_golf wrote: »

I see this chap has offered to assist on the welsh "crowdfunding link " http://www.fair-parking.co.uk/

I worry at times

Woah, never seen that mess of a website before! Seems to be more geared to action against bailiffs, but there was this:

Services Offered

​Preparation and sending of letters to Private Parking Companies

£40

IMHO, an absolute rip-off! :eek:

I have no issue with a company offering a decent service for a very low cost, as I am sure people are aware, but here we do this free and you can't get a better success rate than ours (99% court defence wins, and close to that re POPLA wins too). Plus the hand-holding and writing LBC responses and all we do every day.

Coupon-mad

Ryandavis1959 wrote: »

I beg to differ, Barry B and Tony T are both taking the fight to the ppf's where it hurts them most: in court. There are far more people talking about parking charges on Facebook than this website, plus Facebook seems to have a lot more Scottish users than MSE with Scotland specific advice both public and invite-only.

I am in regular touch with Barry Beavis - a genuine fightback hero - and I know about Tony Taylor (ex UKPC) thanks.

You will not persuade me that Facebook has much of a role to play when most of the advice peddled by most people on Facebook, on most subjects, is utter crap.

ampersand

..........but we need not worry.
We are not merely in ''safe'' hands, but[note the quotation marks; source?] in the care of
‘The Country’s Leading Specialists

In Parking & Minor Traffic Enforcement For A Decade’

He then relies on this 2015 article to pray in aid....
http://www.fair-parking.co.uk/documents/fair_parking_pdf553f67887fc28.pdf
#
Small print euphemism here:
'Please note that Parking Enforcement Solutions advice is free, however it should be noted that this is a commercial service and not an advice service such as CAB'

Push your Noddy car home and save your chocolate pennies.