Parking ticket outside my flat

vidic2015

Hi, I was wondering if anyone had any advice that they could give me.

I have an allocated parking space in the car park outside of my flat. You have to display your parking pass in the window but my pass holder fell off my windscreen and on to the floor. I received two parking charge notices, one around 9pm on Christmas Day and another around 9am on Boxing day morning. I was unable to contact the offices of my management company as they were closed for Christmas. My parking pass fell off again on January 3rd and I received another noticed on my windscreen.

I began to receive the PCNs around January 3rd and contacted my management company to ask for a new pass holder and informed them that I would not be paying the PCNs. A few weeks later and I have started to receive final notices. I emailed my management company asking them to contact the parking company and cancel the charges. They did this and I have received this response.

"Further to the below request, as the Charge Notices (PCNs) were correctly issued due to parking without displaying a valid permit, we have agreed to cancel these Notices subject to a £20.00 reduced settlement charge per PCN.

I have amended the accounts accordingly and placed the accounts on hold for 2 weeks to enable the payments to be made."

Obviously I do not want to pay £60 for the privilege of paying outside my own flat. What should I do?

Please note, I own the flat and the sign in the car park says that charges apply 24 hours but does not mention any specifics about days. The parking company is vehicle control services limited.

Thanks in advance.

The_Deep

Do you own the parking space? If not, what does your lease say about the need for as permit or paying a sum of money to a third party for its non display?

Read these

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.com/2016/11/residential-parking.html

https://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?377246-UKPC-liable-for-trespass-**SUCCESS**

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 five readings are available to watch on the internet, (some 7-8 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.

nosferatu1001

Check your lease. See exactly what it permits or grants to you.

Half_way

as above, check the lease.
One thing to think about:
I assume your flat has a designated/allocated lavatory, would you accept a permit system to use that?

vidic2015

Thanks for your responses.

Me and my partner have gone through the lease and it says nothing about needing a valid permit or about paying any fines to 3rd parties. It just mentions that I'm in entitled to park in my space pretty much.

Is it worth a go emailing back and saying that I don't want to pay the £20 for each of the tickets then?

Umkomaas

Given the days on which the tickets were issued (incl Christmas Day and Boxing Day) are you sure there isn't a Norris Cole residing on the estate, taking sneaky 'snap and trap' pics of you vehicle, uploading to the PPCs website and claiming his £10 bounty per charge? Might explain why someone is 'working' on those two days.

Have you had any disagreement with anyone on the estate?

Coupon-mad

You have to display your parking pass in the window

No you don't, you have rights under your lease that already offer you a parking space, and no third party can offer to you what you already have, on worse terms.

You need to opt out, stop accepting the useless scammer terms. No idea why people accept these terms at all, never accept a permit system in your own home car park, where your lease already grants you unfettered rights.

Accepting the scheme like sheep, means residents might be held to accept the risk of paying a scammer £100 per day! YOU DO NOT NEED THIS ON SITE.

vidic2015

I haven't had any issues with anyone on the estate no. I'll email back my management company and say that i refuse to pay any settlement charges as i'm entitled to a space on my lease