Britannia Court Claim Received

kessik

We parked in a car park attached to a shopping centre in Portswood, Southampton in September last year (after 18:00)
and can't actually remember whether we didn't buy a ticket at all or bought one and overstayed. Shortly afterwards we got a letter from Britannia Parking that included a photo of our car number plate but no times or anything to say how long we'd parked, but asking us for £60 I think.

Since then we had another demand for more money. We don't remember receiving Letter Before Action but on Thursday we got a Claim Form (dated 22 January) so we are being taken to court by BW Legal on behalf of Britannia Parking...this seems a shorter timescale than most people on here but that's incidental. The total amount being claimed is now £237.24.

In the post today we got a letter from BW Legal, also dated 22 January, 'Notice of County Court Claim Issued' which includes a breakdown of costs including Solicitors' Costs of £110 and basically tells us how we can pay in instalments.


We didn't keep any of the letters we've been sent and only remember the first one because of the number plate photograph. I understand the first thing that has to be done is return the AoS within 14 days of January 22 (I'm doing that right now).
Have we gone beyond the point of asking for a SAR? Would that tell us what the grounds were for the charge (ie we either didn't have a ticket or we overstayed because we really don't remember)? Obviously it would have helped if we'd kept the letters but when the first one came and just showed a picture of the number plate with no record of when we got there/when we left etc we just thought it was a scam and threw it away.


Also, do I just need to follow the steps according to the sticky to write my defence? It's a bit daunting....


Any help gratefully received

KeithP

With a Claim Issue Date of 22nd January, you have until Monday 11th February to do the Acknowledgement of Service, but there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. To do the AoS, follow the guidance offered in a Dropbox link from post #2 of the NEWBIES FAQ sticky thread.

Having done the Acknowledgement of Service, you then have until 4pm on Monday 25th February 2019 to file your Defence.

That's a whole month away. Loads of time to produce a perfect Defence, but don't leave it to the very last minute.


When you are happy with the content, your Defence should be filed via email as suggested here:

Print your Defence.
1. Sign it and date it.
   
2. Scan the signed document back in and save it as a pdf.
   
3. Send that pdf as an email attachment to CCBCAQ@Justice.gov.uk
   
4. Just put the claim number and the word Defence in the email title, and in the body of the email something like 'Please find my Defence attached'.
   
5. Log into MCOL after a few days to see if the Claim is marked "defended". If not chase the CCBC until it is.
   
6. Do not be surprised to receive a copy of the Claimant's Directions Questionnaire, they are just trying to put you under pressure.
   
7. Wait for your DQ from the CCBC, or download one from the internet, and then re-read post #2 of the NEWBIES FAQ sticky thread to find out exactly what to do with it.

beamerguy

kessik wrote: »

Since then we had another demand for more money. We don't remember receiving Letter Before Action but on Thursday we got a Claim Form (dated 22 January) so we are being taken to court by BW Legal on behalf of Britannia Parking...this seems a shorter timescale than most people on here but that's incidental. The total amount being claimed is now £237.24.

In the post today we got a letter from BW Legal, also dated 22 January, 'Notice of County Court Claim Issued' which includes a breakdown of costs including Solicitors' Costs of £110 and basically tells us how we can pay in instalments.

There is a capped figure of £50 for legal costs. BWLegal are scamming you with an extra £60

BWLegal come out with various rubbish as to how they add the £60. In your case they have said £110 including solicitors costs.
They are capped in court and this is how BWLegal are scamming you .......

BWLEGAL ADD ON A FAKE £60 ?
In addition to the 'parking charge', the Claimant's legal representatives, BWLegal, have artificially inflated the value of the Claim by adding costs of £60 which has not actually been incurred by the Claimant, and which are artificially invented figures in an attempt to circumvent the Small Claims costs rules using double recovery. >>>> thanks to bargepole

This serious attempt to extort money from you must be pointed out to the court

Le_Kirk

Yes, you submit a SAR, especially since you did not receive a LBC/LOC/LBA/LBCCC which (should) include the Particulars of Claim (POC) but often seems not to these days (according to recent posters). As to your defence you know why you are defending (we did pay) and so you need to look at Bargepole's defences in NEWBIE sticky post # 2 and see which of his carefully crafted defences will suit with a bit of addition (including that you did not receive LBC).

The_Deep

In the post today we got a letter from BW Legal, … which includes a breakdown of costs including Solicitors' Costs of £110 and basically tells us how we can pay in instalments.


£250 is far more than the Law allows for this sort of claim. The down market solicitors whom the PPCs engage know this, but, because they are solicitors, know that a lot of people will pay up.

It is in fact double charging and non claimable debt collectors' add ons. Imo, this is fraud, or, at the very least, improper conduct.

Were this to get to court and they won, the judge would be unlikely to award the claimant more than £175 - £200.

I urge you to report this grubby law firm to their regulatory body, the SRA.

https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/handbook/code/content.page

as I am sure they do not condone this conduct.

The whole industry is a scam, relying on threats of court, and the public's ignorance of the Law, A bill is currently before parliament which will regulate the scammers, many of whom are ex-clampers.

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 Second Reading in the Lords this month, and, with a fair wind, will l become Law later this 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.

Coupon-mad

There is a capped figure of £50 for legal costs.

Yes. Certainly not an extra sum as if it's 'admin' or 'debt recovery'.

kessik

Hi Folks, here's a question regarding MCOL and our defence. I was fully intending to send our AoS before we went on holiday but forgot to do it so had to direct our eldest son over the phone from Sri Lanka on what to do - he filled in the relevant part and sent it back to Northampton. I'm confused now as to whether I can return the defence by email since we sent the paper copy back. Also, the page with the AoS is now with the court (I hope) and I don't know whether there was a MCOL password on it. I tried to go onto MCOL but I got the Government Gateway website...is that right?


I'm getting as confused and worried as can be now.
Thanks for any help you can give

KeithP

You certainly can still file your Defence as described in post #2 above.

Surely everyone keeps a copy of important documents they send, don't they?

If your son sent the paper form back to the CCBC, who signed it?


If the AoS has been accepted, you have until Monday to file your Defence.

Redx

the government gateway is correct, log in and then use the MCOL reference on the actual court claim


the AOS was a different piece of paper


there is no problem in posting an AOS (apart from who signed it ?) and still using email to do the DEFENCE and then later on the DQ as well

kessik

It was already signed, just not sent. And no, he didn't take a copy - I can't blame him for that, I was the disorganised one. Do you know whether there would have been a defence password on the sheet he returned?

Thanks in advance

Redx

the defence MCOL password is on the actual court claim sheet, even if they had put it on the AOS sheet (which I doubt)

if you have the court claim sheet from the CCBC in Northampton in front of you , its on the right hand side, maybe towards the bottom ? in IMPORTANT NOTE , just above the figures being claimed