Smart Parking PCN has got all confusing!

TaziMash

So I got a Smart Parking PCN dated 6 days (I'd received it 9 days after) after I'd parked at what I thought was the train station parking (apparently the bit that I actually parked on belongs to the hotel)

First thing I did was contact the hotel - I got through to a gentlemen on the reception who passed on the FOH Manager's email in the hope that she'd be able to help me.
The gentlemen from the hotel explained how the middle section of the carpark belongs to the hotel whereas the road side spaces belong to the train station, however unfortunately I was unaware of this with it being the first time for me travelling on the train and using the carpark. I wasn't fully aware how many sections there were to the carpark to be honest and unfortunately for me presumed the spaces nearest to the train station belonged to them.
I explained to the gentlemen how it was dark when I'd arrived and then it was dark when I'd left so unfortunately if there were any signs I'd missed them completely.
I had paid £5.20 for an all day Pay and Display ticket from the train station machine but have landed with a £60 (£100 after 14 days) fine for mistakenly parking in the wrong space it seems.
The gentlemen on the phone seemed hopeful that the FOH Manager would be able to help and advised me to send the charge notice and the Pay and Display ticket over an email to see if there was anything that could be done to help with this silly mistake of mine.
So I did just that and the FOH Manager turned out not to help at all (despite me offering to come back and pay what they are owed) and instead told me to appeal, so the day after receiving the PCN I appealed it on their website.

A few days had passed so I emailed saying that I'd recently appealed a parking charge notice on the website, last Friday (it's now Tuesday). The message at the end mentioned that I would be hearing back soon, however I was still yet to hear something back. I stated that I'm a little time conscious as the PCN mentions a 14 day period which began on the 5th, there I have until the 19th, meaning there's only 6 days left. This indicating that I worried about the discounted rate going up to £100 during the appeal process, however if that wasn't the case and my appeal was rejected then I'd just face it and pay the £60.
I got the reply saying they can confirm an appeal has been logged onto the system and is in the process of being reviewed by the appeals team, once they have done so they will contact me via email or post. In the meantime the PCN has been frozen at the discounted amount until it has been reviewed and responded to by the appeals team. The appeals team have 35 days to review the appeal but they are working on them at a much quicker time frame.

A few weeks pass and I haven't heard anything until very recently. I received a Debt Collection notice of £160! With the reason being "INSUFFICIENT PAID TIME" which I really couldn't understand why. So I emailed them that evening saying...
"In the email below (from your correspondence to my email from XXX) it states my appeal (which I made on XXX) has been logged and will be reviewed. It also informs me that I'll be contacted through email or post to hear about my email, which I have not!

I emailed that Tuesday to mainly enquire if the £60 charge would remain throughout my appeal or if it'll go up to the £100 once the 14 period had passed. The reply from the email below states "In the meantime the PCN has been frozen at the discounted amount until it has been reviewed and responded to by our appeals team." So why on earth have I know received a Debt Collection charge of £160?!

The email below also states "The appeals team have 35 days to review your appeal" but I've still not been contacted, not through email nor post. Instead I've been sent this letter, without any prior notice, which I think is a pretty disgusting and contradicting way of dealing with your initial charge considering your email below.

I've not been told whether my appeal had in fact been accepted or declined, and I definitely wasn't told about the charge being passed on to the Debt Collection - instead I was told the charge would stay at £60 until my appeal has been dealt with!

I will be contacting the Debt Collection company in the morning to explain this ridiculous situation and will also be calling Smart Parking if I've not been replied to by noon. As an office worker you've made this situation a rather huge inconvenience to my working day. To think all that had to be done was for my appeal to be responded to as you say in your email, and as did the message on the website at the end of processing the appeal.

I do expect an immediate reply to my email and a solution to the hassle that has been caused by Smart Parking, it has become evident that the company don't quite know how to officially deal with their charges and procedures."

I received a reply the next day stating "We would like to confirm your appeal was reviewed and rejected by the appeals team on the XXX and on the same day a letter was posted to you to inform you of their decision. Since then we have not received any further appeals or payments within the given time frame and as a result the parking charge notice was referred to debt recovery."

I've replied again saying "I was given no notice before the parking notice was passed on to the debt recovery and I most certainly did not receive a letter about the appeal being rejected. If you hadn't heard from me since sending the letter then why was I not sent another letter, or even better contacted through email? Which is a form of contact stated in the correspondence email sent from yourselves.

I believe the poor communication from your own company is causing more hassle for me.

So what comes of this matter now? As I believe it is unfair to presume that I have to pay the debt recovery when I haven't actually had the change to pay the initial charge of £60."

I'm still willing to pay the £60 but it seems they don't want to give me the opportunity
This is where I'd seem the Money Saving Expert forums, by this I realised I've already made some mistakes that the forums advise against .

Smart Parking fobbed me off by telling me to discuss the issue with Debt Recovery, so I emailed them saying "It seems you are unwilling to be fair in this situation.

I'm still yet to know the reasons as to why my appeal was rejected. Therefore I suggest you resend the letter of my appeal rejection so that I may know for myself as to why it's been rejected. The rejection letter should also have a POPLA verification code.

I'd like to appeal the charge and I request a POPLA verification code to enable myself to appeal further.

The POPLA website states anyone can appeal such a parking charge.

The BPA CoP also contains the following;

22.1 under the code you must have procedures for dealing fairly efficiently and promptly with complaints challenges or appeals, the procedures must give drivers and keepers the chance to challenge the parking charge notice.
22.4 If a driver or keep their challenges of parking charges must review the case and decide whether to:
Uphold the parking charge and explain why it was issued and should therefore be paid, or
Reduce or cancel the charge and take no further management action other than informing the driver.

Under BPA CoP and POPLA rules you are required, if you reject the appeal, to send me a POPLA code, If the code is not forthcoming I will contact the POPLA direct with the correspondence that you have sent so far stating that you are refusing to follow the BPA and independent appeals service rules.

Please cancel the charge or send a POPLA code by return along with the letter that was apparently sent to me on the 9th of March informing me of the rejection decision."

And their reply is "We would like to confirm a POPLA code was already issued to you and has no expired as such a further code cannot be issued. Please contact debt recovery to further discuss the matter." They attached the rejection letter with the reason that the evidence I’ve provided shows the ticket was purchase from XXX (a main road) which is the car park adjacent to the hotel carpark. In actual fact the machine I used is literally a few feet away from (what I’ve now discovered) the hotel’s machine. No main roads involved, and this ‘adjacent’ car park is literally two steps away from where I parked.

I've replied again saying "Please can you explain how the POPLA code was issued if this is the first time I've seen the letter (that in all it's a copy).

I have cooperated immediately after appealing by questioning how long the discounted rate stays for, meaning if my appeal is rejected then I'd have to pay the £60.

If I haven't received the letter then how am I supposed to pay the £60? Please can you seriously answer my query here.

Was the letter a recorded/signed for letter? Is there evidence that the letter was definitely delivered? You've not actually taken into consideration that mail gets lost. Nor did you attempt to contact me again with another letter, or even email (it's not like you don't have my email address).

I believe Smart Parking have been more than unreasonable and will be appealing with POPLA on the basis that you've not even given me a chance to pay the £60 after my appeal."

Not really sure what to do at this point. From the very beginning I'd have paid the £60 (after finding out if they forgive genuine mistakes) but it seems they just won't give me that chance. I definitely don't believe I should have to pay £100 or the £160 that it's at now, just because I didn't receive the stupid letter that they sent.

Apologies for the long story but I thought it'd answer any question that may arise.

Hoping someone can help as I literally don't know where I'm supposed to go from here.

Thanks!

Quentin

Before posting everyone is politely asked to read up on this in the Newbies faq thread near the top of the forum


Go there now to learn about the game you are caught up in!


Read up on debt collectors in #4 there - and why you should NOT engage with them at all!!


And stop contacting the ppc too!


(Forget worrying about the so called discount period - it's not your intention to pay at all is it?)


If not too late, and if so far you haven't told them who was driving then edit your post to remove details of the driver

twhitehousescat

could,nt be bothered reading all that lot ,
if you have an outstanding appeal with smart and they have got a debt collector to chase you , complain like hell to the BPA

Umkomaas

War and Peace!

I spotted that DRP are involved so you seem to be at the debt collector stage, so read up in the NEWBIES FAQ sticky, post #4 about how to handle debt collectors.

fisherjim

Follow the advice given, forget all that waffle ppc's aren't interested or reasonable, don't contact debt revivery companies its pointless, the whole industry is a farce they are only interested in money, not what you did and confusion is one of their best tactics.

pogofish

Please read the Newbies Sticky before digging your hole any deeper!

The_Deep

This is an entirely unregulated industry which is scamming the public with inflated claims for minor breaches of contracts for alleged parking offences, aided and abetted by a handful of low-rent solicitors.

Parking Eye, CPM, Smart, and another company have already been named and shamed, as has Gladstones Solicitors, and BW Legal, (these two law firms take hundreds of these cases to court each year). They lose most of them, and have been reported to the regulatory authority by an M.P. for unprofessional conduct

Hospital car parks and residential complex tickets have been especially mentioned.

The problem has become so rampant that MPs have agreed to enact a Bill to regulate these scammers. Watch the video of the Second Reading in the HofC recently.

http://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/2f0384f2-eba5-4fff-ab07-cf24b6a22918?in=12:49:41

and complain in the most robust terms to your MP. With a fair wind they will be out of business by Christmas.

Coupon-mad

Not really sure what to do at this point.

Nothing. Ignore them, you won't get another POPLA code.

From the very beginning I'd have paid the £60

No you wouldn't, don't be daft. No-one pays Smart Parking.

You have taken this far too seriously. Start ignoring the scam, as POPLA is no longer an option.

TaziMash

Quentin wrote: »

If not too late, and so far you haven't told them who was driving then edit your post to remove details of the driver

But I did when I sent the appeal, I hadn't discovered the forums until after and realised I messed it up big time!

waamo

TaziMash wrote: »

But I did when I sent the appeal, I hadn't discovered the forums until after and realised I messed it up big time!

Just ignore them and their ridiculous demands. The only time you need to do anything is if you get a formal Letter Before Claim.

If you do then come back to this thread for further advice.

TaziMash

So a notice of intended court action has come through from DRP stating if the charge isn't paid up they're gonna recommend smart parking to take court action.

Is there a next step for this?