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COUNTY COURT CLAIM - Link Parking Ltd & Gladstones Solicitors
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Pops17
Posts: 7 Forumite
Hi,
I logged on to this site a couple of weeks ago when I received a county court claim from Northampton County Court Business Centre, via Gladstones Solicitors for the Claimant Link Parking Ltd.
In May this year, a parking charge notice was attached to the vehicle I was driving, having parked in an area, namely road that appeared 'safe' to do so, as it had no road markings or noticaeble signage.
The issue reason stated that the vehicle was "not parked in a designated area." I ignored this as it did not seem genuine or reasonable and the fine was extortionate, in comparison to local authority penalty notices. I was also aware that the local council had authority in this area, so was confused as why I was receiving a fine from a private parking company; when the vehicle was parked on a road (again unmarked and unsigned) and not in any of the allocated parking bays.
Sometime later, my partner received a fine (as the registered keeper) for a significant amount more than the original (extortionate) fine. This was also sent to a previous home address, prior to being forwarded on to my current address. I did not respond.
A further letter was received from Gladstones Solicitors, shortly after which I received the current county court claim form, again forwarded on from my previous address.
Having viewed the forum, I regret not having previously appealed; but still believe and uphold the view that I did not reasonably enter into a contract with this company.
As per advice on this forum, I immediately completed my AOS online. In doing so, I also acknowledged being the Defendant/ Driver; as my partner was extremely fearful of what impact this might have on them and their career.
I have now completed a Defence that I need to submit ASAP. I was hoping that following my post, some really helpful people out there might be able to provide some guidance/ advice pre submission.
Most of what I have compiled has been adopted from various parts of this forum anyway.
Any helpful advice at this stage would be very much appreciated.
DRAFT DEFENCE:
In The County Court
Claim No: XXXXXXXX
Between
XXXXXXX (Claimant)
-and-
XXXXXX(Defendant)
____________
DEFENCE
____________
1. The Defendant denies that the Claimant is entitled to relief in the sum claimed, or at all.
2. The facts of the matter are that:
i) The Defendant was the driver of the vehicle registration XXXXXX on the material date and was periodically parked on a road within XXXXXX.
ii) The road that the vehicle, registration XXXXXXX was parked along, had no signage or road markings, alerting the driver to being unable to park the vehicle at this specific place/ road.
iii) Furthermore, it has no road signage alerting the driver to it being a private road.
iv) The parking charge notice placed on the vehicle on XXXXXX reads as, issue reason: 0029 not parked in a designated area. And further states, that the vehicle was parked on private property in a manner where the driver agreed to pay a parking charge as displayed on the signage. The vehicle is described as a XXXXX, and is in fact XXXXX in colour.
v) A county court claim form was received by the driver on XXXXXX. The claim form was addressed to the wrong individual and sent to a previous address. The particulars of the claim vary to those initially provided on XXXXX. Note the following:
That the driver of the vehicle registration, XXXXX incurred the parking charge on XXXXX for breaching the terms of parking on the land at XXXXX – XXXXXX.
vi) There are a relatively small number of poorly marked ‘private land’ signs within the vicinity. However, these have been placed in front of designated parking bays, some distance from the road; and would not be recognisable/legible for the road per se. The notices/ signs relating to ‘private land’ are not bound to be seen and read from the road, and are not transparent.
vii) The terms on the Claimant's signage are also displayed in a font which is too small to be read from a passing vehicle, and is in such a position that anyone attempting to read the font would be unable to do so easily. It is, therefore, denied that the Claimant's signage is capable of creating a legally binding contract.
viii) Additionally, it is unclear what ‘land’ is actually ‘private’. There is no road signage relating to this fact, and there is no clarity on what is public and / or private land within this vicinity. For example, both the local authority and the private parking company are issuing tickets for this same area.
3. The Defendant claims that no contract can be construed from the Claimant's signage, under the contra proferentem principle.
4. Accordingly, it is denied that the Defendant, or any driver of the vehicle, entered into a contractual agreement with the Claimant whether express, implied, or by conduct.
5. Further and in the alternative, it is denied that the claimant's signage sets out the terms in a sufficiently clear manner which would be capable of binding any reasonable person reading them. They merely state, that vehicles must fully display a valid permit and be parked within the confines of the correct allocated bay. In smaller writing below they state, by parking or remaining at this site otherwise than in accordance with the above, you the driver are agreeing to the following contractual terms…However, there is no definition of ‘the site’ or what ‘the site’ entails or comprises of. What is the ‘site’? As per 2 viii) there is no clear provision of what land/road is ‘private’ and what is ‘public’ namely for this stretch of road. Again, unmarked and unsigned.
6. The Claimant is put to strict proof that it has sufficient proprietary interest in the land, or that it has the necessary authorisation from the landowner to issue parking charge notices, and to pursue payment by means of litigation.
7. The Defendant has the reasonable belief that the Claimant has not incurred £60 costs to pursue an alleged £100 debt. The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, in Schedule 4, Para 4(5) states that the maximum sum that may be recovered from the keeper is the charge stated on the Notice to Keeper, in this case £100. The claim includes an additional £60, for which no calculation or explanation is given, and which appears to be an attempt at double recovery
8. In summary, the Claimant's particulars disclose no legal basis for the sum claimed, and the Court is invited to dismiss the claim in its entirety, using its case management powers pursuant to CPR 3.4.
Statement of Truth:
I believe that the facts contained within this Defence are true.
Name
Signature
Date
I logged on to this site a couple of weeks ago when I received a county court claim from Northampton County Court Business Centre, via Gladstones Solicitors for the Claimant Link Parking Ltd.
In May this year, a parking charge notice was attached to the vehicle I was driving, having parked in an area, namely road that appeared 'safe' to do so, as it had no road markings or noticaeble signage.
The issue reason stated that the vehicle was "not parked in a designated area." I ignored this as it did not seem genuine or reasonable and the fine was extortionate, in comparison to local authority penalty notices. I was also aware that the local council had authority in this area, so was confused as why I was receiving a fine from a private parking company; when the vehicle was parked on a road (again unmarked and unsigned) and not in any of the allocated parking bays.
Sometime later, my partner received a fine (as the registered keeper) for a significant amount more than the original (extortionate) fine. This was also sent to a previous home address, prior to being forwarded on to my current address. I did not respond.
A further letter was received from Gladstones Solicitors, shortly after which I received the current county court claim form, again forwarded on from my previous address.
Having viewed the forum, I regret not having previously appealed; but still believe and uphold the view that I did not reasonably enter into a contract with this company.
As per advice on this forum, I immediately completed my AOS online. In doing so, I also acknowledged being the Defendant/ Driver; as my partner was extremely fearful of what impact this might have on them and their career.
I have now completed a Defence that I need to submit ASAP. I was hoping that following my post, some really helpful people out there might be able to provide some guidance/ advice pre submission.
Most of what I have compiled has been adopted from various parts of this forum anyway.
Any helpful advice at this stage would be very much appreciated.
DRAFT DEFENCE:
In The County Court
Claim No: XXXXXXXX
Between
XXXXXXX (Claimant)
-and-
XXXXXX(Defendant)
____________
DEFENCE
____________
1. The Defendant denies that the Claimant is entitled to relief in the sum claimed, or at all.
2. The facts of the matter are that:
i) The Defendant was the driver of the vehicle registration XXXXXX on the material date and was periodically parked on a road within XXXXXX.
ii) The road that the vehicle, registration XXXXXXX was parked along, had no signage or road markings, alerting the driver to being unable to park the vehicle at this specific place/ road.
iii) Furthermore, it has no road signage alerting the driver to it being a private road.
iv) The parking charge notice placed on the vehicle on XXXXXX reads as, issue reason: 0029 not parked in a designated area. And further states, that the vehicle was parked on private property in a manner where the driver agreed to pay a parking charge as displayed on the signage. The vehicle is described as a XXXXX, and is in fact XXXXX in colour.
v) A county court claim form was received by the driver on XXXXXX. The claim form was addressed to the wrong individual and sent to a previous address. The particulars of the claim vary to those initially provided on XXXXX. Note the following:
That the driver of the vehicle registration, XXXXX incurred the parking charge on XXXXX for breaching the terms of parking on the land at XXXXX – XXXXXX.
vi) There are a relatively small number of poorly marked ‘private land’ signs within the vicinity. However, these have been placed in front of designated parking bays, some distance from the road; and would not be recognisable/legible for the road per se. The notices/ signs relating to ‘private land’ are not bound to be seen and read from the road, and are not transparent.
vii) The terms on the Claimant's signage are also displayed in a font which is too small to be read from a passing vehicle, and is in such a position that anyone attempting to read the font would be unable to do so easily. It is, therefore, denied that the Claimant's signage is capable of creating a legally binding contract.
viii) Additionally, it is unclear what ‘land’ is actually ‘private’. There is no road signage relating to this fact, and there is no clarity on what is public and / or private land within this vicinity. For example, both the local authority and the private parking company are issuing tickets for this same area.
3. The Defendant claims that no contract can be construed from the Claimant's signage, under the contra proferentem principle.
4. Accordingly, it is denied that the Defendant, or any driver of the vehicle, entered into a contractual agreement with the Claimant whether express, implied, or by conduct.
5. Further and in the alternative, it is denied that the claimant's signage sets out the terms in a sufficiently clear manner which would be capable of binding any reasonable person reading them. They merely state, that vehicles must fully display a valid permit and be parked within the confines of the correct allocated bay. In smaller writing below they state, by parking or remaining at this site otherwise than in accordance with the above, you the driver are agreeing to the following contractual terms…However, there is no definition of ‘the site’ or what ‘the site’ entails or comprises of. What is the ‘site’? As per 2 viii) there is no clear provision of what land/road is ‘private’ and what is ‘public’ namely for this stretch of road. Again, unmarked and unsigned.
6. The Claimant is put to strict proof that it has sufficient proprietary interest in the land, or that it has the necessary authorisation from the landowner to issue parking charge notices, and to pursue payment by means of litigation.
7. The Defendant has the reasonable belief that the Claimant has not incurred £60 costs to pursue an alleged £100 debt. The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, in Schedule 4, Para 4(5) states that the maximum sum that may be recovered from the keeper is the charge stated on the Notice to Keeper, in this case £100. The claim includes an additional £60, for which no calculation or explanation is given, and which appears to be an attempt at double recovery
8. In summary, the Claimant's particulars disclose no legal basis for the sum claimed, and the Court is invited to dismiss the claim in its entirety, using its case management powers pursuant to CPR 3.4.
Statement of Truth:
I believe that the facts contained within this Defence are true.
Name
Signature
Date
0
Comments
-
What is the Date of Issue on the Claim Form?
Is the Registered Keeper the Defendant named on the Claim Form?
The Defendant named is the only person that can defend the claim.0 -
Hi,
Thanks for the response. In relation to your questions:
1) Date of issue is: 02/10/18. FYI I completed the AOS online the same day I received on 08/10/18.
2) Yes, this is my partner. Hence, why I amended this via the AOS online. I know this isn't advised. However, as stated above, my partner was extremely concerned about what impact this would have on them and their career.
3) I take it because I have acknowledged that I was the driver within the online AOS, my partner's name will be replaced by mine for this court claim. Hence why I have produced the above defence.
I hope this makes sense!
Thanks0 -
No, I don't believe you can change the Defendant just like that.
I'll leave others to confirm that.
A civil court case, won or lost, will not have any effect on anyone's career.
How did you "acknowledged that I was the driver within the online AOS"?
Did you state that in the Defence and Counterclaim box?
Or what?0 -
Having read your response I signed back into the Government Gateway account that I registered for AOS online and have been back through the newbies thread - guide to MCOL and how to acknowledge service!! I can confirm that I entered all of my details - hence why email to my account. However.....you are correct in that the Defendant is still showing as my partner and not me!!
As an aside, I did try to explain the whole career thing to my partner but they were still very concerned. I have no problem accepting responsibility, especially as I believe the parking charge is unreasonable and unfair and would not want someone else to carry this onus, when they were not involved in the incident.
Regardless of my rationale, I take it I need to alter the defence to reflect my partners details and inco-operate the fact that they were not the driver. However, the particulars of the claim state:
The driver of the vehicle registration XXXX incurred......The Defendant was driving the Vehicle and/ or is the Keeper of the Vehicle.
0 -
But you said that you acknowledged that you were the driver whilst doing the AoS.
How exactly did you do that?
I am concerned that you may have inadvertently already filed a Defence.0 -
Then you are a third party and YOUR PARTNER HAS NOT ACKNOWLEDGED THE CLAIM.Yes, this is my partner. Hence, why I amended this via the AOS online. I know this isn't advised. However, as stated above, my partner was extremely concerned about what impact this would have on them and their career.
Please please follow what we tell you. YOUR PARTNER must acknowledge it! He/she will have to phone up the CCBC and ask how to email the acknowledgement instead, in the RIGHT name. You are not a party to it.
Come on, it has NO impact on anyone's career, not even if he/she is a copper. Not even if they lose. This is not a risk to anyone.
No-one is telling the partner to pay it and this is nothing to worry about but MUST be acknowledged by the DEFENDANT, NOT YOU.
This is not just 'advice'. It's a fact of the court process. YOU can't do this. The AOS will be blocked.PRIVATE 'PCN'? DON'T PAY BUT DON'T IGNORE IT (except N.Ireland).
CLICK at the top or bottom of any page where it says:
Home»Motoring»Parking Tickets Fines & Parking - read the NEWBIES THREAD0 -
Thank you for your advice. This is the first time I have ever experienced anything like this and I appreciate that this Forum is extremely helpful and invaluable but can be a bit of a minefield at times also.
I have attempted to contact the CCBC for advice as to how to progress from here and they wont provide me with any info because...you guessed it, I'm not the Defendant.
I explained the situation and the Advisor informed me that the Defendant would need to contact them (as you stated above) and that a further AOS will need to be submitted. They said that this can be downloaded and emailed to them with a brief explanation of reasons for this.
I am also aware that the defence needs to be entered ASAP. As the date of issue of court claim was 02 Oct 2018.
Having logged back into the MCOL Govt Gateway portal I have copied and pasted the AOS I completed online below for viewing and any helpful comments:
Acknowledgment of Service
Claim number
XXXXXX
Claimant
Link Parking Limited
Defendant
PARTNER'S NAME
Defendant's full name if different from the name given on the claim form
MY DETAILS
Address to which documents about this claim should be sent
MY DETAILS
Personal Details
Date of birth
MY DETAILS
Additional contact details
Telephone number
MY DETAILS
E-Mail
MY DETAILS
Intention
I intend to defend all of this claim
Signed
I am the Defendant
MY DETAILS
06/10/20180 -
Do you think I have a case or should I just bite the bullet and pay the £238 fine?0
-
Do you think I have a case or should I just bite the bullet and pay the £238 fine?
You don't have a case. It's your partner's case. Other than doing the background work on this you need to keep your head down - everything must be in your partner's name.
Is this copied from your original AOS, or from a re-submitted one today?Defendant
PARTNER'S NAME
Defendant's full name if different from the name given on the claim form
MY DETAILS
Address to which documents about this claim should be sent
MY DETAILSPlease note, we are not a legal advice forum. I personally don't get involved in critiquing court case Defences/Witness Statements, so unable to help on that front. Please don't ask. .
I provide only my personal opinion, it is not a legal opinion, it is simply a personal one. I am not a lawyer.
Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.Private Parking Firms - Killing the High Street0 -
This was from my original0
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