Claim received, AOS sent today, now stressing

ParkingStressie

Really appreciate it, thanks. I at least have the advantage that I deal with data protection for work so that's not one thing I'm starting from scratch with.

6 months? Wow. Hadn't picked that up from my thread-reading.

System

6 months? Wow. Hadn't picked that up from my thread-reading.

The SLA for courts for small claims is a 30 week limit (7 months) but most are between 5 and 6 months from issue to hearing.

Coupon-mad

Advanced search the forum for the words 'another one bites the dust'.

I type that every time someone wins in court, so that any newbie can do a search and see every win I've read about here (and I read every thread except when on holiday).

If you then read some of the results, even skim read them and look at the date they got their court claim, you'll see how long it takes from 'claim form' to 'win at a hearing'.

You'll also see a shedload of winning defences & can crib from the most similar ones.

ParkingStressie

Thanks CM, will do. That's really helpful to know.

ParkingStressie

OK, SAR draft email below. All brutal feedback gratefully received ;-)

Just need to check whether I should be asking for any other data I may not know about that may be relevant.

Format, some wording cribbed from the ICO's website as I prefered the straightforward language.

[address]
[Phone number]
[date]

Data Protection Officer
Vehicle Control Services Limited
2 Europa Court
Sheffield Business Park
Sheffield
S9 1XE

Dear Sir or Madam
Subject access request
Please supply the data about me, as the keeper of vehicle registration mark [xxxx], that I am entitled to under data protection law relating to County Court Claim No xxxxxxxx issued on 29 August 2018:
• All original photographic images and/or video images of the vehicle entering, parked and leaving the [xxxx] car park on [xx/xx/17] clearly showing the time and date that every image or video was taken.
• A copy of the original Notice to Keeper, if issued.
• A copy of all correspondence sent to me
If you need any more information from me please let me know as soon as possible. As you know, data protection law requires you to respond to a request for data within one calendar month.

Thank you for your assistance.

Yours faithfully

[Signature]

Coupon-mad

Please supply the data about me, as the keeper of vehicle registration mark [xxxx], that I am entitled to under data protection law relating to County Court Claim No xxxxxxxx issued on 29 August 2018, including but not limited to:

ParkingStressie

Coupon-mad - absolutely, thanks, was reading through other threads and was starting to think that I'd taken 'short and to the point' a bit too far.

ParkingStressie

Went back to the car park last night, in the dark. All the signs are new. I know this because a) they're clean and shiny, b) there are small extra 'privacy notices' underneath that I presume have been added because of GDPR, and c) you can see where previous fittings were attached to the lamp posts, in a slightly different position.

I've photographed them anyway and will check against other threads to see if they're compliant or not, but there are loads of them, some quite high and difficult to read in the dark, particularly on entry (as you can't stop on your way in to read, coming off a busy road), but also some at eye-height. Lighting isn't great but isn't terrible either. I'm a natural born pessimist so I'm feeling like it's hard to argue 'inadequate signage'.

I don't have photographs of October 2017 signs. I know they were on the lampposts back then, but have no recollection of whether or not they were repeated on the walls of the buildings at eye-height. From where I parked I wouldn't have had to either drive or walk past them in their current location.

Umkomaas

I don't have photographs of October 2017 signs. I know they were on the lampposts back then, but have no recollection of whether or not they were repeated on the walls of the buildings at eye-height.

In which case you require contemporaneous (date/timestamped) photographs from the PPC of the signage on which they will be relying. If they produce photos of the current (new) signage (hopefully showing recent GDPR references) you will have good proof that these were not the ones on display at the time of your parking event.

ParkingStressie

Thanks Umkomaas. Just finalising my SAR email (now adding proof of ID, ownership etc as per other threads in an attempt to fend of delay tactics. Yeah right...) so presumably I ask them for this at a later stage. I'll go away and re-read the 'what happens when' stuff.