Hire car admin fee for traffic violation at motorway services

aleen

Got an e-mail last night from the hire company that I have been charged £35 admin fee for the joy of them passing my details onto CP Plus Limited for a ‘traffic violation’.

While my car was in repairs and I had a hire car, I had slept at a hotel within a Moto Service area (in England, I hired the car and live in Scotland), these usually have 2 hours free parking. Gave car reg at reception upon checking in, but looking back, we might have given wrong reg as the reg on the keychain was one letter wrong.

1. How do I not pay the admin fee ?
2. How do I not pay the fine either.

The PDF attached to my email has my first name misspelled by one letter, my correct address but postcode is of a town 10miles out, so I wonder if the hire company has passed on correct details or these details? Should I ask hire company to pass me scanned copy of notice? Should I phone hotel first and see which details they have input into the system to confirm what reg we gave? Is it worth picking up a fight with the hire company (local branch) for writing wrong reg on the key chain ? I mentioned this incident to staff from a different branch as I was returning the car and they suggested I ask them(local branch where I took the car from) to sort it out?

Thank you all.

nosferatu1001

1) check your T&C. Confirm if they cover FINES and PENALTIES *only*, or if they also cover these INVOICES.
They are NOT a fine
It is not a "traffic violation" as thar would require a law, not a simple contract

2) Yo udont dodge teh question of whos driving. You just dont say who was driving. Thats it. Youre in Scotland so you are not liable as hirer - the provisions of POFA, which CAN make the keeper OR hirer liable, DO NOT apply to Scotland at all.

The_Deep

This is unlikely to be a traffic violation. If it is a PPC they usually rely on contract law and what you have received will be an invoice for damages for an alleged breach of an alleged contract, known by us as a scam.

Read this

https://www.legalcheek.com/2017/08/parking-company-sues-top-qc-loses/

and complain to your MP as It is the will of Parliament that these scammers, (very often former clampers), be put out of business.

Hopefully that will take place in the near future. The Bill has passed through the HOC without hitch, and goes to the Lords soon. In the meantime involve your MP, the poor dears are buckling under the weight of complaints about these scammers.

This is an entirely unregulated industry which is scamming the public with inflated claims for minor breaches of alleged contracts for alleged parking offences, aided and abetted by a handful of low-rent solicitors. Is has been suggested by an MP that some of these companies may have connections to organised crime.

Parking Eye, CPM, Smart, (especially Smart}, and others have already been named and shamed in the House of Commons as have Gladstones Solicitors, and BW Legal, (these two law firms take hundreds of these cases to court each week), hospital car parks and residential complex tickets have been especially mentioned. They lose most of them, and have been reported to the regulatory authority by an M.P. for unprofessional conduct

The problem has become so widespread that MPs have agreed to enact a Bill to regulate these scammers.

Sir Greg Knight's Private Members Bill to curb the excesses, and perhaps close down, some of these companies passed its Third Reading in late November, and, with a fair wind, will become Law next year.

All three readings are available to watch on the internet, (some 6-7 hours), and published in Hansard. MPs have an extremely low opinion of the industry. Many are complaining that they are becoming overwhelmed by complaints from members of the public. Add to their burden, complain in the most robust terms about the scammers.

aleen

The T&C wording in the agreement is below :

I acknowledge that for the period of the rental i shall be liable as the owner of the vehicle for any fixed penalty offence committed tith respect to the vehicle or any penalty or tarking charge notice, any excess charge or penalty charge for parking or bus lane contraventions which may be incurred and any charges and penalty charges incurred under a road user charging scheme.

So should my approach be to first get the admin fee cancelled from the hire car company by stating this is not a traffic violation? And then deal with the ‘fine’/invoice if it ever comes?

Is it not worth it at all trying to prove I was a guest hotel and entitled to park for free but made an error with the letters? Would this appeal to their common sense or are these companies that hungry for money that they would not give a damn ?

It's a genuine mistake, their car park was not overused or signs ignored. I did actually read the signs as I have had frights before.I did once overstay the two hours at a service station and then went and paid the extortionate £15 parking for a day.

The Deep that's interesting, but a bit much for me. I have never made contact with my MP for any reason at all. I just want to not pay the admin fee or whatever the fine/invoice turns out to be.

nosferatu1001

There is no common sense. If you think otherwise, spend a day reading threads here. Yo uwill see you are wrong.

You utterly ignore any parking chagre in scotland, and you EDIT YOUR POST so we cant work out who drove that day. ONLY the driver is liable in Scotland, noone else.

Neer use the "F" word. It IS an invoice.

aleen

So sorry if I am being thick, but after reading the T&Cs of the hire company, I write back to them and say what? Just cause my invoice isn't enforceable, does that invalidate their admin fee? Full Terms wording below :

Additional Obligations - You shall pay to us on demand:

• All fines and court costs for parking, bus lane, fines and road tolls, for all highway infractions or other Vehicle-related offences assessed against the Vehicle, us, you, any Additional Driver or any other person you permitted to use the Vehicle until the Vehicle is returned, unless caused through our own fault;

• A reasonable administration fee for processing any fines or offences against the Vehicle, us, you, any Additional Driver or any other person you permitted to use the Vehicle during the Rental Period, unless caused through our own fault;

nosferatu1001 I genuinely was not the driver tbh and my post only said I used the car park and slept in the hotel

Half_way

The driver of the vehicle had not been fined, there has been no traffic violation.
You said they was one digit out on the reg number that was entered by the hotel, when most people give a wrong reg number its usually completely wrong, how do you know that the hotel staff member didn't make a typing error?

The_Deep

The Deep that's interesting, but a bit much for me. I have never made contact with my MP for any reason at all.

Well now you have a reason.

They have charged you for dealing with an invoice for a disputed debt. It is neither a fine nor an offence. The debt is not enforceable unless a judge says so, If they have a trade association or ADR use it to complain and ask for an extra tenner for your time.


.

nosferatu1001

Halfway - theyre saying the VRM on teh KEY FOB was wrong, and thats what was given to the hotel. So the hire car company put the wrong number on the fob. Happens often

Aleen - no, I am NOT saying because the INVOICE is unenforceable the admin fee isnt either
I was asking you to check to see if your T&C covered INVOICES or only talked abotu fines and penalties
Your T&C ONLY talk about fines and penalites, there is NO mention of civil issued INVOICES on there, nor anything that coudl be construed as such.

"A reasonable administration fee for processing any fines or offences against the Vehicl"

It was not a fine
It was not an offence

TELL your hire company to cance the admin charge or you will initiate a chargeback, and quote the T&C above at them. Point out this was issued by a PRIVATE PARKING COMPANY, who have no authority, cannot issue fines and do not deal with offences. Given them 7 days to refund or you will perform the chargeback.

aleen

I shall write to the hire company tonight, thank you. Do I start the charge back already, or wait for the 7 day threat to work?

Meanwhile I am reading the newbie thread which says to always complain to the retailer, hotel etc. So as I was at the hotel car park within a Moto services area, do I complain to the hotel or no? I apologise if I am being thick, and can assure you your time is valued and appreciated.

DoaM

Where did the wording in post #4 come from? (It's different to that in post #6).


Post #4 possibly gives them a get-out; post #6 only refers to fines, penalties and "offences" so the admin fee is not applicable for a Parking Charge Notice (invoice).