RobinHood- Doncaster Airport, approach road PCN from VCS

Ja99iE

Hi,

Almost 2 months ago I received a PCN notice for "stopping in a zone where stopping is prohibited". The stoppage - on an approach road leading up to the airport - was for less than 1 minute and the 3 photos to support the charge are a total of 36 seconds apart.

I have replied to them, as the keeper of the vehicle, using the information in the newbies thread and received the following response around 3 weeks later:

Re: Parking Charge Notice Number VCS************ (Vehicle: **********)
Site: Robin Hood Airport Doncaster
Issue date: **/12/2018
We refer to correspondence received from you concerning the above numbered Charge Notice.
Please note that responsibility for this Charge lies with the driver of the vehicle at the time the parking contravention
was observed. However, we are unable to ascertain who the driver was on the date in questions from the information
given within your appeal.
In order for us to process your appeal correctly, please follow the instructions below:
1. Notify the driver of the vehicle that they will need to appeal to us directly, including their FULL NAME (Forename
and Surname) and a valid FULL SERVICEABLE ADDRESS within 14 days.
2. If you are representing the driver we require a signed and dated statement from the driver of the vehicle confirming
that you are authorised to appeal on his/her behalf; this needs to be an original signature and not a photocopy or a
stamp. The statement MUST contain the drivers FULL NAME (Forename and Surname) and a valid FULL
SERVICEABLE ADDRESS.
Please ensure that correspondence is submitted through the portal myparkingcharge in order to correctly
adhere with the appeals process.
OR
3. Pay the PCN. Payments can be made online at myparkingcharge by following the links for "Pay Now",
or over the phone by calling 0845 226 9138 and using a valid Credit or Debit Card to make payment. It is your
responsibility to ensure that payment is received within our office by the date specified.
As a gesture of goodwill we have placed the charge on hold for an additional period of 14 Days to enable one of the
above actions to be complied with.
We are willing to re-offer you the original discounted charge of £60 as full and final settlement of this Notice, if
payment is received within our office on or before the 13/02/2019.
30 January 2019

If payment is not received by this date, the amount payable will revert to £100. Failure to pay this charge within the
stated times, may result in Debt Recovery Action being taken and further costs up to an additional £60 being incurred.
Yours sincerely,

Appeals Administration Team
CENTRAL PROCESSING OFFICE

I appealed again, with pretty much the same wording as the first attempt and around 3 weeks later they sent me this:

Re: Parking Charge Notice Number VCS******* (Vehicle: *******)
Site: Robin Hood Airport Doncaster
Issue date: **/12/2018
We refer to your appeal in respect of the above Charge Notice (CN) received on 10/02/2019.
Having considered the points you have raised and reviewed our records, we are unable to accept your appeal. Our
main reason(s) for this decision are as follows:
The signs at the entrance to the Robin Hood Airport and the access roads within, clearly state "No Stopping", giving
clear notice that the land is private property and that a Charge of £100 will be levied if vehicles do stop. The above
detailed vehicle stopped in a zone where stopping is prohibited and the driver became liable to pay that Charge.
In your appeal it is unclear who the driver was when your vehicle was seen to be stopped on the access road.
It is important we highlight that we will continue to pursue this matter on the reasonable assumption that you were the
driver of the vehicle on the date in question until information/evidence to the contrary is provided.
A review of our CCTV evidence has confirmed that on the date in question, your vehicle stopped for an unreasonable
amount of time on the access road where restrictions apply.
There are more than 70 high profile signs advising drivers not to stop and warning that if a driver does stop, a Charge
of £100 is payable. The signs exceed recognised industry standards, with some as large as 2m by 1.1m (6ft 6in by
3ft 7in) which clearly state "No Stopping" alongside the nationally recognised Highway Code symbol for a Clearway
(No Stopping). Furthermore, the signage on the approach road is reflective and positioned to face oncoming vehicles
and the text size used is relative to the average approach speed of a vehicle in relation to the speed limit in force at
that location.
Vehicle Control Services is a member of The International Parking Community (IPC) which is an alternative
Accredited Trade Association to the British Parking Association (BPA).
The IPC operates its own Code of Practice which as members Vehicle Control Services must adhere to. As such in
disputed parking appeals motorists may be offered further recourse to the Independent Appeals Service (IAS).
20 February 2019

As Accredited members of the IPC we therefore do not use the services of the BPA or POPLA. The BPA has its own
Code of Practice and offers motorists the opportunity to engage with POPLA (Parking On Private Land Appeals)
service.
Further information in respect of our membership and the appeals process can be found at theipc
Further to your request for the images we hold in respect of this PCN, please be advised that the footage for this
PCN has been made available via the link below. You will have 7 days to download the footage before the link
expires.
[deleted]
We have fully reviewed this case and we are satisfied that the Charge Notice was correctly issued. We are unable to
accept the mitigating circumstances raised in your representations , your appeal is therefore rejected and the Charge
will stand; photographic evidence which supports this can be viewed at myparkingcharge

What you should do next - Either:
1. Pay the Charge Notice (CN): In order to settle the Charge, the payment of £60 to reach us by 06/03/2019 or
£100 to reach us by 20/03/2019 must be made. Failure to pay this charge within the stated times, may result in Debt
Recovery Action being taken and further costs up to an additional £60 being incurred.
Payments can be made online at myparkingcharge by following the links for "Pay Now", or over the
phone by calling 0845 226 9138 by using a valid Credit or Debit Card.
OR:
2. Appeal to the Independent Appeals Services (IAS): If you believe this decision is incorrect, you are entitled to
appeal to the IAS. In order to appeal, the IAS will need the following information (which is also contained in the
subject header of this correspondence).
Notice Serial No: VCS********
Vehicle Registration Mark: *******
Appeals must be submitted to the IAS within 21 days of the date of this correspondence. Please visit theias
for full details on how to submit an appeal online.
It is important you note that if you do make an appeal to the IAS, the reduced charge offered above will no longer
apply. You should also be aware that if a payment is made prior to an appeal being made to, or adjudicated by, the
IAS AND this is accepted as Full and Final settlement against the CN, the appeal will automatically be dismissed and
the matter will be deemed closed. Should you appeal to the IAS and it is unsuccessful, the full amount outstanding
(£100) will become payable within 14 days of the date the IAS decision is notified to you. Failure to pay this sum in
the 14 day period will result in debt recovery costs of £60.00 being added to the outstanding balance.
It is important we also highlight that no further appeals will be accepted at this office; any such appeal must be
made to the IAS.

I am unsure how to respond or take this further. Any advise appreciated.

Thanks.

The_Deep

There are plenty of threads on here concerning PCNs on land covered by airport and railway bye laws, where different rules apply. As long as they do not know the identity of the driver there is very little they can do.

Search for previous threads re station and airport tickets, and complain to your MP.

KeithP

Now all you do is prepare yourself for a deluge of debt collectors letters.

Post #4 of the NEWBIES FAQ sticky thread will tell you how to deal with those.

Post again on this thread if ever you receive a Letter of Claim or official court correspondence and you still need help after having read post #2 of the NEWBIES thread.

Redx

as above


your next task is to SIT ON YOUR HANDS and IGNORE anything except an LBC or an MCOL in the post, especially IGNORE the debt collection letetrs

Ja99iE

Ok, thanks guys! Hopefully they won't take it further.

The_Deep

Ja99iE wrote: »

Ok, thanks guys! Hopefully they won't take it further.

Sometimes they do, but they will come a cropper if they take this to court,

Redx

Ja99iE wrote: »

Ok, thanks guys! Hopefully they won't take it further.

there are quite a few airport ones like yours going through the court system at the moment , so my advice would be to keep your eye on all of them , including RHA (yours - VCS) , LJLA (liverpool - again VCS) and Newcastle Airport as well (UKPPO via B W LEGAL)

we need to see a few results to know the score regarding bylaws etc

your first task is to front it out for 6 months, by IGNORING the debt collection letters

2_Foot_of_Head

Hi Ja99iE, I have received a similar PCN from VCS, only mine was for "Stopping in a zone where stopping is prohibited" on an access road at a retail park. However, the PCN includes a clip-art image of a NO STOPPING sign and the on-site signage only has NO WAITING signs.

However, my main reason for posting is to get advice on what to enter on the online appeal form at myparking.co.uk, as the choices in the dropdown box for "Reason for appeal" do not accurately reflect my circumstances. I spent over three and a half hours readng the Newbies stickies and other posts on here last night and am comfortable with what to include on the rest of the form.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Redx

retail park is not the same as an airport

but the advice to you is SIT ON YOUR HANDS and wait for an NTK to come through the door

then appeal as KEEPER using the blue text template

no blabbing about who was driving

and your BEST OPTION is to get the M.A. of the retail park to cancel it, which the NEWBIES thread tells EVERYONE to do

Coupon-mad

Any advice greatly appreciated.

On your own new thread - yes!

The reason would be 'other' or anything that doesn't say who was driving.

There is ONE - I recall someone wondering about it before and to me it was obvious. Spot the option that doesn't talk about who parked.

2_Foot_of_Head

On your own new thread - yes!

I'm sorry about the thread hi-jack but one of the things I was conscious of after reading up last night, was the point about not starting new threads when the subject matter has already been covered - I realise it can become tedious for the regulars who provide excellent advice on here.


With regards to giving a reason that doesn't allude to who was driving, this limits the options to the following:

My vehicle is permitted to park and is on the vehicle exemptions list.
My vehicle was not in the car park at the time the contravention occurred.
There was no signage at the car park/location indicating any restrictions.
This vehicle has never been owned by me.
My number plate was cloned.
The vehicle was stolen or taken without my consent.

There is no "other" option and it seems to me, the ones listed above do not accurately describe my reason for appealing - the best option would be the one that refers to signage. However, I have returned to the site and there are several signs. It seems to me that they are deliberately trying to get me to enter a false reason, as this would make rejection of my appeal easier for them. I've also tried to submit the form without selecting a reason but this is not possible.