Parking Eye = CCJ = Equita, what next?

TRANSPORTER

Hi Folks, its been awhile but I'm back, almost debt free and PPI payments claimed so happy days.
ok onto the subject in hand, I received a PCN from PE, dare I say it but I ignored ( was away from home due to work ), anyway it went to court and I was awarded a CCJ, I have now been informed that they have passed my correspondence over to Equita and not to contact PE anymore.


The details, I paid for a ticket, and paid the correct amount etc etc, the problem that I can see, I have an old car so the ticket only has my first 4 digits of my registration printed on it even though I inputted my whole registration.


I have contacted PE via email using their appeal page and explained that if they had done a simple cross reference check then they would of seen my vehicle and ticket and matched the pair up via the DVLA details that they had. I included an image of the ticket so they could see the amount paid.


After their reply I have sent numerous emails explaining as to why I didn't appeal ( away from home ) and could they confirm that I had paid the correct amount for parking and that it must of been a technical error as to why 3 digits were missing from the ticket.


Their last email was today saying that they have passed my correspondence to Equita and I should contact them with regard to my matter. I rang Equita this afternoon and as of yet they have no details about my case.


I have been to the CAB but due to the fact that I hadn't appealed in time they couldn't offer me any advice so that was a dead end street and a waste of half a days holiday!!


I questioned PE's legal team as to why they didn't check details to make sure there was a water tight case but all questions asked were not answered by parking eye they just kept saying that I didn't appeal in time and that I should follow the link to their payments page to make full payment.


They did say in one of there letters that if I pay the fine within 30 days of the CCJ being issued then the CCJ would be removed, how can they do this if it is going to cost me £255 to attempt to get it set aside?


So I now have a £185 fine waiting to be paid, a debt management company about to take the case on and worse still a CCJ on my record which is going to cost me £255 to maybe get set aside, all this for a £1.00 parking ticket that I paid, I'm going round the bend at the moment and would like some grounded advice as to where I go from here. I'm tempted to pay the fine so it doesn't increase anymore ( not made of money ) then see about getting the CCJ set aside. I've read lots of threads with the "ignore it" in the subject but that is easier said than done sometimes and do wonder if these members that are saying this advice have been in the same situation.


I look forward to any help and advice that you might give, many thanks.

Le_Kirk

If you follow the instructions on the CCJ, i.e. pay it (retaining proof of payment and asking PE for a receipt) the CCJ is not entered on your record. If you want to contest it, it will indeed cost you the fee you state but then, if the judge agrees with your reasoning and agrees to set it aside, the original claim must still be defended and won. How good is your case against the original claim? How good are your reasons for not responding to court papers, and for failing to attend the small claims court?

TRANSPORTER

Hi Le_Kirk, the CCJ is on my record already, as per my check on clear score, so paying it at the moment is already gone so to say.
As for my case and reasons for not attending, I was away with work during the process of all the letters from PE and also during the so called Court session when the CCJ was issued.
In relation to the court papers I think even if I was at home and received them I would of been very dubious of them anyway. They are from the County Business Court in Nottingham (I'm sure you have heard of it already ) now I'm not in the business of receiving court papers at any time so I'm nit a guru on how they should look. But I would of thought that the court stamp would have to of been an original and not a copied print, and that also the solicitor that was defending PE would of Signed the papers, mine just had her name typed in a box. This all looks to my un educated eye as being more of a scare tactic to make you pay, but hind sight is a wonderful thing.
I would say my case is strong enough for a set aside but again I'm no expert.

Le_Kirk

It's the CCBC in Northampton and there are always complaints that the paperwork and stamps look a bit dubious. If you've missed the deadline for paying it (it is at bottom left on the CCJ letter) then your only option is to apply for a set aside and judges like prompt action once you discover the CCJ. In my opinion (IANAL) being out of the country for work is a good reason (rather than excuse) to have failed to receive, open and read post and miss deadlines.

TRANSPORTER

Ok, would it be wise to pay the £187 fine then go for the set aside of the judgement? I don't want the fine to rise, I have looked at the form N244 and will study it abit more, I might even book another appointment at the CAB for help in filling it in, I know there is a help page here, but I want to make sure of which court etc that I should name, as I said I've never had a CCJ and its a little unnerving to be honest.
More importantly once the N244 is sent off and being dealt with can Equita still chase me for the outstanding fine if I don't pay it before submitting the N244?

twhitehousescat

one you pay up , there cannot be a set aside , also that figure cannot increase unless they get debt collectors knocking on your door

TRANSPORTER

twhitehousescat wrote: »

one you pay up , there cannot be a set aside , also that figure cannot increase unless they get debt collectors knocking on your door

Is that not what Equita are??? there website is full of debt collection etc etc.
What happens if that's their next step to send the collectors round, this has been ongoing since July last year (date of alleged event )

waamo

So far we have not seen enforcement action from Parking Eye other than letters.

This may change in the future.

If a set aside is granted then all enforcement action, including letters, stops. Your chances of getting a set aside? I wouldn't like to say.

If you tell the judge what you told us then no hope. If you stick to the facts and present a reasonable defence to the original ticket then you stand a reasonable chance.

Whet you do is your call, only you know your personal circumstances. If your credit file is shot anyway it might be worth hanging fire and see if they ever bother to actually enforce it.

TRANSPORTER

wouldn't the fact that the CCJ has been given and that it is on my credit file ( that was in very good order before this) mean that PE have enforced this PCN?
May I ask what you mean by "If you tell the judge what you told us then no hope" So if I tell the Judge that due to my work commitment's I was away from home for a couple of months and was unaware of this matter and thus unable to respond then I will have no hope of even getting a set aside looked at?

waamo

TRANSPORTER wrote: »

wouldn't the fact that the CCJ has been given and that it is on my credit file ( that was in very good order before this) mean that PE have enforced this PCN?
May I ask what you mean by "If you tell the judge what you told us then no hope" So if I tell the Judge that due to my work commitment's I was away from home for a couple of months and was unaware of this matter and thus unable to respond then I will have no hope of even getting a set aside looked at?

Post 3 is rather damning in terms of a set aside. Tell a judge you might have ignored papers anyway will see an application thrown out. In saying that I'm sure you wouldn't mention to a judge you thought the paperwork may just be a scare tactic.

PE have obtained a ccj. They haven't (other than sent letters) enforced that ccj. Nobody has turned up at your door and had your widescreen.

TRANSPORTER

ok I get what you meant now, yes maybe I could of chose my words slightly better, obviously by ignored, we I did as I was away from home and didntn have my post.
As for the CCJ being obtained, this is where I am a little confused, I am thinking that because it is showing on my credit file with the amount still outstanding then the CCJ is enforced. Am I right in thinking that what you mean is that until it gets to the stage that no payment is ever made and the baliffs are knocking then the CCJ still isn't enforced?