Railway car park - no cost for blue badge but PCN issued

highlydefined

My local station has recently changed the company that runs their car park. I am a Blue Badge user and up til recently you could simply park in a bay and that was that. However, now with the new company you have to 'pay' for parking even though it is zero cost via their Connect mobile phone app. On two occasions I have been unable to access the app as it has just hanged, and on both occasions I have been sent a Penalty Notice By Post Notice To Owner from a "PCN Admin Centre" asking for payment of £100.

I have not yet replied (received them on 21st and 31st Dec). Should I ignore or reply?

Thanks for your help.

Guys_Dad

Obviously appeal, but what is the exact wording re Blue Badge paying on the signs. Photos of the signs would help too.

Fruitcake

What is the name of the PPC please? The usual culprits at railway stations are NCP, Indigo, and APCOA.

If the word penalty has been used, the PN probably mentions byelaws as well, which would be a good thing as it will time out after 6 months.

If byelaws do apply, then the two appeals should be sent as near to the end of the appeal windows as possible to help run the clock down.

The sticky thread for NEWBIES has all the information you need including a ready made appeal template in blue text.

twhitehousescat

who is the actual parking company

highlydefined

It's Indigo parking...

twhitehousescat

ok , please do a search for indigo and the new appeal system

unlike any other company that are members of the BPA you will not get a second appeal thru POPLa

my advice - please ask others is to do NOTHING , dont even appeal back to indigo , do NOTHING

I will let others advise and comment , but you will NOT be taken to court with this case

Fruitcake

OK, the choice then is whether to send the initial appeals as late as possible, or ignore everything for the next six months.
After six months it will be statute barred and you can then ignore it for the rest of your life. You just get six months practice before you do this.


If you do appeal, Indigo will no doubt reject them both and then offer the opportunity to make a second stage appeal to an outfit called ITAL. This is new to the regulars as we don't know anyone who has yet done such an appeal, successful or otherwise.
There has been much debate on this site whether or not posters should be advised to do an ITAL appeal. The final decision will of course be yours, but you need to consider everything you will come across very carefully before you decide to appeal to ITAL or ignore after your initial appeal has been rejected by Indigo.

twhitehousescat

just to add https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=75321787&postcount=24

highlydefined

Thanks. Appeals sent, now we wait.

waamo

The big question is are you a person who needs brown trousers every time a letter drops through the door or do you laugh in the face of a first class stamp?

If you are a robust type of person then it is safe to ignore all the scary letters you get. Indigo, despite what they threaten, are actually powerless. They are unable to do anything.

Some people feel that doing nothing is deeply scary though. If you brick it at the thought of getting scary letters then respond slowly to each letter you get. Every three weeks or so write back to Indigo asking inane questions about the last letter you had.

This "offence" times out after 6 months so 3 or 4 letters should do it.

The_Deep

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.